Book II: An Unmasked Horror
by DaemonS1gn
Summary: Things are in motion as Harry Potter attempts to aid Draco Malfoy in his escape from the Dark Lord. Dumbledore seems reluctant to help them, leaving both boys on their own. In the midst of chaos, will Lyra finally claim Draco as her own?
1. Nightmare Revisited

マスクされていないホラー

Hermione dashed into Ron and Harry's room, nearly knocking over Ginny, who shouted,

"He's not in there! I've checked!"

"_I haven't _checked!" Hermione said defiantly. Ginny glared, then shook it off with a roll of her eyes. Pulling away blankets on the beds and rummaging through already opened closets, Hermione wasn't even startled when Fred and George apparated in the room.

"We checked around the house; he's not outside." they said in unison. Hermione tore away from the open closet, flustered.

"Well, look again!" she cried hysterically. Ron suddenly dashed in between them.

"Dad says he's not in shed, and mum said he wasn't on the first floor." Hermione rose to her feet. In a panic, the entire Weasley house, and Tonks, Hermione, and Remus nearly tore the Burrow apart looking for Harry Potter. He had gone missing shortly after Draco had been apparated to Hogsmeade. Ginny reappeared at the door.

"Bill says he's checked every room twice. He's not here! He's not even in the Burrow!" she said. Hermione felt hot tears behind her eyes. Every possible situation that could've happened to Harry filled her mind. She hoped he wasn't hurt, or injured, or dying somewhere. Ron put a hand on Hermione's shoulder.

"We'll find him, or he'll come back." he suggested. Ginny suddenly made her way to the suitcase of Harry's. It was open, and overturned, but as far as she knew, not by them.

"Look, his suitcase. It was under the bed earlier."

"Yes, yes, but someone may have pulled it out to search under the bed!" Hermione hissed. Ginny ignored her for now, and gently searched through it. Then, Ron stepped forward, and began to rifle through.

"Ronald Bilius!" Ginny shouted. Ron whipped around at Hermione.

"His Invisibility Cloak is gone!" he gasped. Hermione jumped to her feet.

"Are you sure!?" "YES! Look! I remember him putting it in _this _suitcase. It's not there."

"But why would he-…" Hermione paused for a moment, and began to think in silence. Fred and George went downstairs as Molly called for them. Ron started downstairs too. Ginny rose,

"Come on, Hermione." she said softly. Hermione followed silently.

Downstairs, all of them had sat down at the dining table in the kitchen and somberly hung their heads.

"Where could he have gone?" Molly wondered aloud. Arthur seemed to be in deep thought…as well as Hermione.

"There's really nowhere he can go, considering he can't apparate himself." Ginny suggested, "and it's not like anyone can just run out into the cornfield as night." all of them silently agreed, but continued to sulk.

"You know, Molly, "Arthur began, "when I was preparing to apparate, I felt another tug on my sleeve, not Malfoy. I looked, but no one was there." Hermione's hand fell down onto the table with a loud bang and startled everyone.

"Oh my gosh…Harry! He used the Invisibility Cloak and grabbed onto your sleeve to apparate with you and Draco!" she said. Ginny shook her head.

"But why would he-" Hermione launched off the chair.

"He's probably at Hogwarts now. We should send Hedwig to him with a message."

"Hermione, wait!" Ron said, starting after her when she didn't stop. Bursting into their room, she startled Hedwig, who hooted and lowered her ruffled feathers.

"What Ron?" she asked, when she was scribbling an anxious note. Ron stood, unsure of what to say.

"Why would he go with Malfoy? I mean…come on!" he began to argue. Hermione shook her head.

"I don't know. But he doesn't do anything without a good reason." she attached the note to Hedwig's foot and opened the window.

"You could also send something to Dumbledore, see if he can find Harry in Hogwarts. I mean, if he's there. You know, normally he's not…" Ron suggested. Hermione looked at him.

"Maybe I should…" she said, grabbing the parchment and quill to write another message. For a moment she was stumped on what to say, then just decided to leave out formalities.

"Oh, but wait, I just sent Hedwig out." she whined, "where can I get another owl?" as if on cue, Pig zoomed into the room and anxiously fluttered about.

"Okay okay! Just settle down!" Hermione griped as he held out his foot impatiently. Ron smiled to himself as Pig darted out the window the moment she had finished tying the knot. Watching the tiny owl fade into the snow flurry, Hermione shivered when a gust of frozen wind raced in. Shutting the window, Ron looked at her.

"What happens if we get no word back?" Hermione closed her eyes.

"Trying not to think of that."

(Malfoy Manor)

Lucius laid on the bed, eyes closed and seemingly relaxed, but inside his mind he was panicking. The Dark Lord put a charm on the house that confined them to it. Narcissa was pacing around the room, enough that she began to sweat, and she had to remove her overcoat. Thoughts of their son clung to every part of their minds. What would become of him? Was the Dark Lord going after him? Did he know where he was? Lucius felt like he'd aged ten years in the past few weeks. First everything is fine. Then Draco nearly ripped off the front door in some blind panic. His son goes to school, dies while he's there then somehow is resuscitated. Soon after, he goes missing from his room, turns up at Hogwarts, goes missing again then somehow ends up in the closet scared out of his mind. Lucius knew that the confession Draco offered had more to it. Suddenly he bolted upright. He had to tell Narcissa, he'd almost forgotten. He had tried to earlier, but was interrupted.

"Narcissa, come here, and sit." he coaxed softly. Narcissa angrily shook her head.

"I can't!" she hissed.

"Please, there's something you need to know." he said, taking her arm the next time she passed, and made her sit down. He took several breaths before he looked into her eyes.

"Three days ago, Draco came out of the closet." he ignored the strange expression that had just stolen across his wife's face. "He looked panicked, and distraught. He broke into tears and he told me, that The…" he stopped short, his stomach feeling queasy. "He confessed to me, that The Dark Lord had groped him. Not once, but many times." he could no longer look into Narcissa's eyes, but when he glanced upwards he saw a mask of searing animosity.

"He. Did. What!?" her voice low and quiet, for now. When she got mad, she was a silent and slow motion explosion. Lucius was quite the opposite.

"Draco told me that The Dark Lord has been groping him." he repeated.

"Why?…." she growled.

"Draco believes it is to punish every one of us."

"I'm going to kill him. If he ever steps foot in the this house or even looks at my precious son again he will die!" Narcissa snarled.

"Narcissa, please lower your voice. Bellatrix might be sneaking about." he said, trying to control his own anger. He pulled his wife into an embrace, his head fell onto hers.

"We'll work a way past this charm." he whispered, "This is no Azkaban, and I refuse to be imprisoned in my own house." Narcissa quivered in anger.

"I swear if I get my dragon back I'll never let him out of my sight." she hissed.

"I know. Perhaps it's time we s-" Lucius stopped short as he heard a particular sound from outside the door. Slowly, he pulled away from Narcissa, clasped his wand and with a flick opened the door to reveal- Nagini curled up on the ground outside the door. Upon discovery, the snake hissed violently, and tore off down the corridor, winding across the marble floor easily. Narcissa sighed and sat down on the bed.

"We're being spied on in our own home." she whispered. "Perhaps it's time we what?"

"Secede."

(Hogwarts)

_Draco whimpered and twisted in the bed, but then realized he could not move. Opening his eyes, he nearly screamed in horror. He was in the rundown orphanage again. Yanking his arms, Malfoy felt them tightly tied to footboard once more. _Oh god no…please! _He trembled and gave a choked sob. _Please let this be a nightmare and nothing more! _This time, there were no blankets or stained sheets on the bed. Only him, and the bare mattress. The boy shivered and looked at himself to see that he himself was stripped bare as well, except his black boxers. The window in the room was completely covered now, and no light dared to escape and offer the boy hope. _Wake up, Draco! Damn it, wake up! _He tried to hit his head on the metal of the footboard to wake him up, but it had no effect, or even pain on him. Shivering with a more profound sensation, Malfoy lay still and listened. It was silent all around him. And the boy begged that the nightmare would end before Voldemort turned up. A creaking door submerged all hope in his chest. Keeping his eyes closed, he tried to wake up. Cold hands slowly wrapped around Draco's tied wrists, sliding down his arms until they reached his clavicle. It was a battle to keep his eyes closed. Malfoy pressed the tears back into his eyes and shook his head. _This isn't real. This isn't real. This isn't real. _He chanted to himself in his thoughts. _

"_Angel Face, open your eyes, this _is _real." a serpent like voice whispered to him. A desperate whimper escaped Draco's trembling lips. _No! No! NO! _He continued to deny it. The hands left his collarbone and the boy heard someone walk around to the side of the bed. _Oh god no! _Somehow he knew he wasn't going to just go through the motions, but feel every bit of this. Draco shivered as the bed creaked and creased under the pressure of him. His body curled in terror as he felt the robes glide over his naked flesh to straddle him. _

"_Eyes open, Draco." the voice said again, less sickly sweet and more demanding. A tear escaped his right lid as he opened them. The tears marred the form of The Dark Lord into a blurry watercolor. A terrifying one. Malfoy began to shiver regularly, not just when Voldemort tortured him. _

"_You're a monster." Draco whispered, looking away. The older man chuckled._

"_Nice of you to finally discover that, boy!" he growled, the silkiness left his tone again. Leaning down, the Dark Lord kissed his sternum. Malfoy's eyes closed. _Please…just let this end! _His mind tried to take him elsewhere. _

"_Oh, you like this now, Draco?" Voldemort teased. The Slytherin shook his head violently. _

"_I hate you! I hate this! Why me!?" He tried to shout, instead it came out as a shaky cry. The Dark Lord smiled and came up to rest his arms beneath Draco's head, holding him close. Draco cringed while his body tensed, lower, he could feel Voldemort pressing himself against him. _

"_I couldn't care less if you hated me." he purred, flicking Malfoy's tongue with his ear. _

"_Just get off me!" Draco said through clenched teeth. Rising up, The Dark Lord narrowed his already slit-like eyes at him and began to remove his outer robe. Malfoy couldn't help but watch in horror as he disrobed and ran a finger down Draco's side. The boy cringed and tried to avoid him. The older man chuckled again quietly, as he removed his robes torturously slow. Malfoy looked at the broken chair in the corner, and wondered why he wasn't awake yet. A girly whine was caught in his throat as Voldemort's licked from his navel up to his clavicle. _

"_Stop. This. Please." he had to say between clenched teeth. _

"_Quiet, Draco. I only want to hear you moan and whimper." Clenching his teeth the boy refused to utter a single sound if he could help it. One of the robes from Voldemort fell across Malfoy's abdomen, as the Dark Lord had completely disrobed. Shutting his eyes, Draco dared not to move or look. Long, dirty fingernails tickled the skin on Draco's side, his body shuddered from the effect. It wasn't too late before he could feel stiff dead lips kissing over his neck, and up to his jaw line. Suddenly, his head was forced forward and The Dark Lord's lips encompassed his, the slimy tongue sliding over Draco's. The sensation involuntarily caused him to whine. Pressing against the young boy's hips, he grinded and slid himself over him. Draco couldn't hold back a deep moan as he arched his back upwards, his body betraying him. Voldemort cupped his cheek and ran a thumb over his lip. _

"_Draco, I do believe you are enjoying this." he said, voice raspy and lecherous. Malfoy nearly bit the finger in anger. _

"_Just die! Die for all I care! I hate you! I will never ever like what you are doing to me!" he screamed. Voldemort merely frowned. _

"_Oh, but I think you will, Draco. You will _love _what I can do to you!" _

"_NO!" Draco shrieked. Darkness engulfed them and Malfoy no longer felt bound to the bed. He began to thrash wildly around. _

"_Malfoy! Knock it off!" a voice from the void called…._

Draco bolted upright and gasped, taking deep breaths. A flash of Harry Potter in his vision reminded him of where he was. The Room of Requirement; after deciding to avoid the Common Rooms, the two went here to sleep, on opposite ends of course.

"Malfoy, are you all right? What happened?" Harry asked, concerned, but also wary. He had heard Draco moaning from the other side of the room, then the boy began to scream. Afraid someone would hear and investigate, Harry sprung up to see Draco writhing on the ground, tears in his eyes.

"Yeah….no….I'm not…I had a…." he stopped short and scowled, still uncomfortable with Potter near him, listening to his deepest secret and thoughts.

"A nightmare." Harry finished for him. Draco glared at him.

"Did you dream it too?" he nearly spat, then hoped to god he didn't. The shame would suffocate him.

"No, I didn't." Malfoy sighed in relief.

"Yes…I had a nightmare. About _Him._" Draco put his arms around his knees. "No matter how many baths I take, I can't shake the feeling of his grody fingers all over me." he whispered. Harry felt his heart ache. _This is disgusting. He needs to tell someone else. _Then he thought of Dumbledore. If the Headmaster protected Harry, could he not protect Draco? Standing up, he tapped the other boy on the shoulder.

"Come on." he said.

"Where are we going?"

"To see Dumbledore; to ask him to protect you."

"I can't." Draco said, stopping Harry in mid-stride. He wheeled around.

"Why not?"

"Well, earlier in the year, I rejected his offer of protection, pretty rudely too." Malfoy blushed in shame. Harry came back over and practically hauled Draco off his butt.

"Dumbledore doesn't hold grudges, especially on students. Now, come on." he said, clutching Draco's arm.

The sun was beginning to peak over the snowy mountains in the distance, the snow glittered like diamonds, and Harry felt even more nervous about the Weasley's, and the others. What would they do if he came back? Draco seemed to walk behind him like a dazed zombie. He couldn't blame the Slytherin. It must have been an awful experience. Harry vaguely imagined it for a split second, and shuddered. _I would have vomited. _He thought. The statue leading to Dumbledore's office stood in view. Harry then felt worried, it had been too long since he'd seen Dumbledore, and wondered if the password had been changed recently. Before he could say anything, Hedwig sailed down the corridor, and landed on Harry's outstretched arm. A note was tied to her leg. Pulling it away and stroking the snowy owl's beak, he unraveled it impatiently. He immediately recognized the writing as Hermione's.

Harry,

Wherever you are, you have the entire Weasley family and the rest of us worried to death. Respond immediately upon receiving this message, please, Harry! We want to know if you're all right, injured, or in serious harm.

Your best friend, Hermione

"At least you have people who care about you." Malfoy's voice sounded from over Harry's shoulder. He jumped and looked at the pale boy.

"Your parents care about you, Malfoy. Don't say anything you'll regret." Harry said, then signaled Hedwig closer. "I should probably respond to this now then. After all He-" suddenly another hoot that didn't belong to his owl echoed down the corridor. Both boys and the owl looked to see Pigwideon sailing, even faster than Hedwig, to Dumbledore's office. Pig stopped short, seeing no way to enter, and began to make irritated noises. Harry stepped forward.

"Lemondrop." he said, trying the last password he remembered. Nothing happened. "Damn it." he muttered. Draco stood useless off to the side.

"Blackberry." Harry tried the one he remembered right before they left for the holidays. The statue remained unmoved.

"Acid pops, Sherbert Lemon, Dumbledore?" Harry guessed now. The statue continued to stay still. Suddenly it moved its head, startling Draco greatly as he stumbled back a few feet and stood behind Harry.

"Mr. Potter, is this an emergency?" it asked. Harry nodded his head.

"Please, is Dumbledore in?" the statue nodded, and invited them to the platform. Hedwig settled on Harry's arm, and Pig on Draco's shoulder as they stepped on. The stairs began to shift upwards.

Dumbledore was standing in the center of his office, and waiting for them to come up.

"Good evening, Harry," he looked to Draco, "and Malfoy." he said. Draco didn't look or respond yet. The moment Pig saw Dumbledore, he fluttered to him and held out his leg. The Headmaster untied the note and put into the folds of his robes.

"How'd you know we were coming?" Harry asked.

"I heard you from downstairs. The passwords you offered were all good tries, but not correct. After being thoroughly amused, I had the gargoyle let you in." he said, a small smile on his face as he began to pace around. Fawkes stared at the blonde Slytherin, very curious to know why he was here. Hedwig and Pig had settled on either of the boys, and had no intention of moving.

"Well," Harry started off, looking to Draco for support, or even for him to take control. Malfoy appeared unmoved.

"Draco, have you reconsidered my offer?" he said, stepping forward. The other boy took a nervous breath and nodded stiffly.

"I can't do this…" he whispered to Harry.

"Yes you can. Don't hide forever." the Gryffindor nudged him. Draco slowly looked up at Dumbledore, and immediately broke the gaze.

"Draco, by all means, if you believe that I will cast you aside because of your rudeness to me earlier, then you're wrong." The Headmaster said light-heartedly. Malfoy finally gained the courage and looked him straight in the eye.

"I need you to help me." he said, "I- ….I can't go back home. I can't go anywhere. He'll only follow me until the end. I don't know what to do…" _Or say for christ sakes. _Draco thought to himself. Harry stepped forward.

"I have to kill Voldemort." he said the name, which discouraged both Dumbledore and Draco, "What he's doing to Draco is sickening, more than that actually." Dumbledore nodded.

"I understand your predicament Harry, but as we've discussed before, you need to destroy all seven of them before you can kill him." he said, greatly confusing Draco.

"I know, but there's got to be something we can do." Harry said, mainly to himself. Dumbledore looked to Draco once more, and stepped over to him.

"Draco, you are aware of what has attached itself to you?" he said. _More riddles, wonderful. _The Slytherin thought.

"I'm sorry, sir," he added, "I don't kn-"

"Draco, I do believe you have met her before."

"Lyra." Draco whispered.

"Yes, that was her name."

"No. I haven't got any sign from her since then." he said. Dumbledore frowned. Harry looked at Draco.

"Tell him about it." he whispered. Malfoy's eyes widened.

"No, Potter." he said sternly. "I can't go that far." Dumbledore, despite being on the other side of the room now, heard.

"Draco, you do not have to tell me. I understand. But you need to understand that I cannot help you." he began to ascend the stairs. "Oh, and by the way Harry, you should probably tell your friends you're not dead." he said, disappearing. Harry suddenly remembered Hermione's frantic note.

"Oh Merlin! I almost completely forgot." he said, rushing to the desk and grabbing the quill, he began to scribble a note back. Draco stared at the last place Dumbledore had been. _I cannot believe it. He was no help at all! He doesn't understand my situation! _He felt like screaming. _Does he know that I was …. By Voldemort!? _He hated using that word, even it was within his mind. Pig cooed on Draco's shoulder and looked him. Malfoy glanced at the owl, and then recognized it as Ron Weasley's. _Wonderful. Bloody wonderful. Lyra, please, I don't know why you don't see me, but I do appreciate your last effort to protect me. _Draco thought of the incident at the Manor, when his parents had left and Voldemort chased him all over the house. But why, why on earth didn't Lyra come to see him? It didn't make any sense to him. Harry jolted Malfoy out of his thoughts as he began to leave the office. Hedwig flew out faster than them and went through an open window back to the Burrow. Pig quickly launched off to follow her.

"Well thanks, Potter, but he was as no help whatsoever. If you understood what the bloody hell he said then good for you." Draco said sourly.

"Stop being a prat. Now who's this person _you _two were talking about?" Harry said. Draco hissed.

"No, why don't you tell me why you can't just kill Vol- You Know already?"

"Why don't you just kill himself yourself?" Harry snapped, and began to quickly walk away. Malfoy stopped dead. _Because I don't have my wand, stupid arse. _He thought. _But…could I? _Running to catch up, the blonde sneered at him.

"You have no idea what I've been through. You haven't experienced it! You're not the one who shuts down when he shows up!"

"Shut up, Malfoy, if you want him dead then do it! Stop using your rape as an excuse not to do it!" Harry shouted angrily. Suddenly something stabbed deeply into his heart. _What…What the hell!? WHY DID I JUST SAY THAT!? _

"Excuse?!" Malfoy's voice twisted the knife in his heart. Harry wheeled around. The blonde was already tearing up, badly. Several tears already caressed down his jaw line.

"Malfoy, oh my bloody god I didn't mean-" the Slytherin shook his head and turned in the other direction, sprinting away and disappearing down a dark corridor.

"Draco, please!" Harry shouted. Tears of his own began to stream. _Why?! Why? Why? WHY?! I wouldn't say something like that? Whether it was Malfoy or- or anyone! Oh no, he's probably going to kill himself right now. _The nervous wrenching feeling claimed all over Harry's mid-section as he began to feel dreadfully ill. He began to run off in search for Malfoy. _My god if he forgives me for that I swear I'll give him a hug! _


	2. The Dark Request

**(Malfoy Manor)**

Lucius stood at the window of their bedroom. Looking out at the bleak and grey horizon, he began to feel suffocated by terror and depression. Where was Draco? And would The Dark Lord succeed in catching him? _Of course he would. _Lucius thought pessimistically. _He is young, and an easy target. No…Draco is smarter than that. He can outrun and outhide him, but not for long. _Malfoy gave an irritated sigh. His son. His beautiful son. Why in bloody blazes would Voldemort even want Draco in the first place? He received his mission, what else was there to do? Lucius's knees felt weak as he stumbled back and fell into the gold and green upholstered chair behind him.

"What have we done, Narcissa?" he said aloud. His wife was lying across the bed, tears in her brown eyes.

"Nothing, Lucius." she answered. Her eyes closed and she reached for the cashmere blanket beside her. Pulling it over her, she nestled in and whispered her son's name.

"Draco…" it was quiet enough in the house for it to reach Lucius's ears. An hour ago, they had been slyly looking for a way past the charm on the house, or even a way remove it themselves. Voldemort was still in the manor, strangely enough. He had also ordered Bellatrix to keep a close eye on the Malfoys. Severus had left long ago, and returned to Hogwarts. A horrid feeling within Lucius told him that most likely, Voldemort sent him there to search for Draco in the castle. But what was the big deal? Why was the Dark Lord's fascination with Draco so immense? Malfoy suddenly felt a hand on his shoulder, and looked to see Narcissa standing beside him. The tears in her eyes had stopped and she now had a determined gaze in her eyes.

"Narcissa," Lucius whispered.

"We're going to get out of here. I guarantee it." she said.

"But how? We cannot walk out, the Floo Network was disconnected from us, we cannot apparate." he said, he could probably go on for a while. Narcissa shook her head.

"We will find a way." she said. Lucius rose from the chair.

"Why so bold now?" he whispered, stroking her cheekbone. Narcissa smiled instead of answering and leaned forward to kiss him. Malfoy returned the kiss, pressing harder against her. His arm slipped down around her waist as she broke off to nip his lower lip. Moving his head, Lucius gently kissed her neck. Narcissa sighed and nipped his ear. The door suddenly cracked open, and Bellatrix glided in. Lucius and Narcissa broke off the affection and glared at her.

"Oh, am I interrupting?" Bellatrix giggled. "The Dark Lord wishes to see you both." she said, still giggling at them. Hands running down his chest, Narcissa tore away and moved passed her sister, giving her a dirty stare. Lucius moved to follow her, ignoring his sister-in-law.

Slowly, they stepped through the door to the dining hall. The Dark Lord stood on the other side, his head looking over his shoulder. Lucius wondered what the hell this was about. Not to mention, Bellatrix was still following them. Narcissa saw that both of them had their wands drawn. _What is happening? _She said to herself. Suddenly, at the same time, Bellatrix and Voldemort whirled on them with their wands.

"_Stupefy!" _they said as one. Lucius and Narcissa barely had their hands on their wands before Bellatrix's charm hit Narcissa, and Voldemort's struck Lucius. Both Malfoys fell to the floor, unconscious, their wands rolling across the wooden floor. Bellatrix wondered why the Dark Lord hadn't confiscated them earlier. Nagini slithered forward, and tested the air on her tongue. Stepping forward, Bellatrix collected the wands, and moved to Voldemort.

"I'll take those, Bellatrix." he said. The Black sister handed them to him, brushing his hand on purpose. "Now, to…send a little message to Draco." he said, looking down at the fallen Malfoys and chuckling. "Put them in the cellar." he said, and moved away. Bellatrix growled to herself. Draco, Draco, Draco. That's all it was, the Dark Lord's latest obsession. _Who cares about Draco? _Bellatrix wondered. _Just some snobby rich boy who can't even do a simple mission for his master. Unlike me…_She scowled while pulling her sister's body down to the cellar, she could've used a levitation spell, but was busy arguing with herself more than using common sense. _I mean come on!….He's never going to do it! _Propping her unconscious sister up against the wall, Bellatrix shook her head and started up the stairs. _Just kill Draco already! He's nothing but a useless distraction to The Dark Lord and my sister, and Lucius. Bloody, bloody, hell. _Bellatrix went to start dragging Lucius to the cellar as well, when Voldemort stopped her.

"No, Bellatrix, leave him here. I have business with Lucius…" he purred, as Nagini slithered up to the unconscious blonde Malfoy. "Go keep watch, in case he comes to the house." he ordered. Bellatrix dropped her shoulders and sulked to the doorway, hiding near it and staring out the window.

"Oh, Lucius, be prepared to die…when the time comes…"

**(Hogwarts)**

Draco pressed his face into his knees, holding his arms tightly around them. He wished he could stop crying, but it was the only thing he could do. How could Potter say something like that? After all he had done. Was Potter just toying with him? Falling onto the stone floor, he closed his eyes. _Curse him. Bloody hell I hope he poisons himself by accident. Or something…I don't even care what he does. _He had the urge to vomit, but held himself together. Depressing and hopeless thoughts entered his mind. He could not outrun Voldemort forever, he would have to brave it alone and go back to the manor, for even when he was far away, the Dark Lord could still plague his dreams. It was awful, he would not be able to sleep, go home, or even feel safe at school…and the only person he ever had faith in…was gone. The urge to vomit claimed him, and he stumbled to a toilet.

After spilling himself over and flushing it, he staggered weakly back to the sink under the window. As he moved, his shoes clicked against the stone, normal; but he could've sworn he heard footsteps behind him. As if someone was trying to match his, but was off. Draco wheeled around to face the familiar nothing. He sighed nervously and continued to walk. Something very odd clicked against the stone, turning the boy's stomach. Panic welled in him and he desperately wished for his wand already. He felt naked without it, and even more so when Voldemort was around.

"Show yourself." Malfoy said, strong and stern. Suddenly a fluffy white dog pranced around the corner and trotted up to him. Draco dropped to his knees and held the dog when it jumped into his arms.

"London?" he inquired. The dog looked at him with topaz eyes and seemed to smile. The dog wasn't disfigured and grotesque, he wondered why.

"London, please, where's Lyra?" he asked the dog, then seriously doubted his sanity now that he was talking to a dog. London sniffed the air and jumped from his arms. The dog went behind a door, and seemingly vanished. Draco closed his eyes and leaned back against the wall, thinking of a plan to escape all the torment. Suddenly a cold, serpent like voice cut into his skull, and had his body twisting against the stone. _**Draco Malfoy…I have your parents confined to the Manor. If you do not come to the Manor within six hours I will kill them both, slowly and torturously. Then I will hunt you down and make life for you unbearably agonizing. Do not make the fatal mistake of failing to show up. **_Draco gasped for breath as his body went limp. He felt the essence of him dissipate.

"Hell…" he whispered. _My parents? He's going to kill them! I have to go there…but…_A deep moan of despair left him as he thought of every possible scenario that could happen. _I just want…to die…_A tear slid from his eye as he stared at the ceiling. He did not plea for Lyra. She would not help him. Hell, she probably wasn't even real. All of this was some insane hallucination, and his little fantasy world tried to pull him in. _To hell with everyone. _He thought. Just then…he couldn't move. Not a muscle, he couldn't even blink. Suddenly, his vision blacked out, like a candle. He was no longer alone…

**(The World of the Undead)**

Taking a deep breath, Draco slowly opened his eyes. He wasn't in the bathroom, it didn't even look like he was in Hogwarts at all. The walls were deep mahogany and paneled. The floor was a russet color, made of stone, covered by an intricately designed rug with golden tassels on the corners. Although, he wasn't lying on the floor. His eyes glanced to the couch he was on. It was dark green and gold. The room was dark, except a few dim candles. _Where am I? _He wondered. Sitting up, his heart froze when he saw a dark figure standing by a window. Moonlight poured in and illuminated the area. _Please…please let it be anyone but Voldemort. _He pleaded. The figure appeared to be feminine, however, for she was very slim, and robed in a scarlet qipao. The hair was black, long and up into an elaborate bun around the back of the head. Braided hair swirled around tightly, and letting two long strands hang in front. Gold was intertwined in the braids. From the angle, Malfoy could see one eye was bandaged.

"Lyra…?" he breathed, feeling his heart skip a few beats. The figure turned and looked at him. Her face wasn't skeletal this time, but much like his, a flawless porcelain. The uncovered eye was multiple shades of white. The other, was covered, blood seeped from it.

"Draco Malfoy." she whispered. "I cannot apologize enough for my lateness in getting back to you." she said. Draco shivered.

"Umm…it's all right." he was at a lost for words. So many unanswered questions festered in his mind.

"Where are we? This isn't the pagoda from last time." he asked first. Lyra nodded.

"I have many places of residence, this is yet another." she answered. Draco searched his mind for another question.

"Back at the Manor, when I went to my room…I saw something strange in my vision. Like black dots floating around the edges, and red spidery lines."

"It was a warning. I did not wish for you to enter your room. The Snake Man was lying in wait for you." she answered. It was easy to detect the malice she held for Voldemort.

"And when he caught me, he was blasted back…was that you as well?"

"Indeed." a candle to Draco's left flickered.

"Is this for real? I am I here…or…no…" he asked.

"This time you are here mentally. Your body still remains upon the floor of the lavatory in Hogwarts. I sent London to guard the entrance while I brought you here." Lyra began to move around the room, as silently as a shadow, and as dangerous as a storm at sea. Draco kept an eye on her, just incase.

"What should I do…?" he whispered. Lyra halted behind him, out of sight.

"Hmm?" she inquired.

"The V-did you hear the message he gave me?" Malfoy twisted around him his seat to face her, but she was no longer there. Whipping his head around, his heart faltered when she appeared in front of the window again.

"No, I did not." her voice less soft now.

"He threatened to kill my parents if I didn't arrive at the Manor in six hours. I think he'll still kill them. He's going to….going-…to do unspeakable things again." he blushed furiously and played with the cuff links on his shirt. Slowly, Lyra came to sit down beside him. She reached out a skinny arm and stroked his jaw line with the back of her hand.

"What do I do?" Draco breathed, quivering under her touch.

"I cannot make that decision for you, nor can I live your life. It is yours to decide. You can take a stand, or you can lie down and let everyone walk on you." she said, her arm gently pushed him down into her lap. Draco sighed as she stroked his hair.

"You're going to let me go soon aren't you?" he whispered, he couldn't resist shivering as her long fingernails brushed over his neck.

"Yes, I sense that the Potter boy is searching for you." she said. Draco shot up like a threatened snake.

"Potter!? Searching for me?! Like I care!" Malfoy hissed. Turning his head away, he gripped onto his shoulders. "I thought he cared…" he breathed. Lyra's arm came back to him, and pulled him into her lap.

"Relax, Draco." she whispered. His head fell against her thighs again, and he closed his eyes. Her fingers glided through his hair, giving him an odd feeling. His body tingled and his spine shivered each time she touched him. Taking a deep breath, he went limp and relaxed.

"You're so beautiful…" a whisper just barely reached his ears. His eyes opened in suspicion.

"Did you say something?" he asked, his heart pounded.

"No, now shhh…I'm sending you back now." she commanded softly. In the next moment, blackness flooded his vision, and he could no longer feel her near him. In the next second, he felt the stone floor beneath him, and someone…someone was touching him! Draco's eyes flew open as he took a gasp of a breath. Harry jumped back and stared at the blonde boy.

"Potter! What you are doing here!?" he tried to shout, but had not the energy for it. Harry's hands grabbed Draco's shirt and held him firmly down as he began to speak.

"Listen Draco, I am sorry! I don't have the slightest damned idea why I said that. I just…I just…." the Gryffindor looked ready to cry himself. "I don't know…but…I'm sorry…" he whispered. Malfoy peeled Harry's fingers off his shirt and scrambled away from him.

"Okay then…" he said. "But I've got bigger problems now." he got to his feet and stepped away. Harry leapt to his feet as well.

"What do you mean?" he asked. Draco turned around and looked him in the eye.

"Voldemort," he said the name clearly and as undaunted as possible, "has threatened to kill my parents if I don't return to the Manor within six hours. I don't know what to do. But I'm pretty sure he'll kill them regardless of whether I show up or not. And as far as I'm concerned, there's nothing you can do about it." he explained with a sneer. Harry glanced around for a moment, then appeared to think…very carefully.

"Go back to the manor then." he said. Draco nearly punched the boy for his insensitivity.

"Potter I-"

"Because you won't be alone." Harry finished. Malfoy stared, confused.

"What do you mean?" the Gryffindor gave a smile.

"I have a plan."


	3. Interference

**(Malfoy Manor)**

Lucius began to stir, moving weakly and groaning. Voldemort turned his head to look at him. Nagini was curled around his neck. The Dark Lord stood in front of a huge bay window, as the moonlight streamed in. Malfoy had been magically bound to a chair in the meantime. Voldemort decided he would taunt Lucius about his failures, reveal a shred of his plan to see Malfoy's reaction, and of course heavily imply what he had been doing to his pristine son. Nagini kept an eye on the blonde man's movements. The Dark Lord could have used a reviving spell, but preferred Lucius to wake up slowly, and feel disoriented.

Finally, the man's eyes opened, and looked around. He struggled once against the chair and tried to feel for his wand. He mumbled a curse when he realized he was tied. Voldemort turned around.

"Ah, Lucius, it's about time you woke up." he said deviously. Lucius was silent for a moment, thinking of how this came to be. He and his wife were walking to the Dining Hall, and were hit with the _Stupefy _spell. Suddenly he glared up.

"Where's Narcissa?" he growled, his voice drowned in anger. Voldemort merely chuckled, amused.

"Do not concern yourself with _her,_" he teased, "she has not been harmed, yet." Lucius tried to jerk forward, but was held fast against the chair. Nagini surreptitiously slithered away from her master and made her way over to the Malfoy, positioning herself near him but out of sight; incase she was given an order to bite him.

"Where is she?" Lucius continued to pull against his binds on the chair.

"You'll find out soon enough." Voldemort gave a vague answer to further distress the man. Malfoy wanted to know where Draco was, but lacked the courage to ask. Not to mention he feared the result of asking.

"I am greatly disappointed in you, Lucius." Voldemort began to circle him. "I was hoping you would rise back through the ranks with a little _encouragement, _but my _other _Malfoy seemed to slip through my fingers."

"Draco…" Lucius uttered involuntarily. His heart nearly stopped beating.

"Yes, Lucius. Draco. The two of you have one thing in common. You both evade your duties as Death Eaters in the most sly manner I have ever seen. But Draco has one thing you do not. Youth. And he can be bent to my will once I have broken him." The Dark Lord smiled in the shadows as he concocted more ways to torture the young boy. If his plan succeeded, perhaps he would force Lucius to watch…

"What does this have to do with my son!?" Lucius snapped. Voldemort frowned as the man began to speak in a defiant tone. Then he laughed, evilly and faced the Malfoy.

"Soon it won't matter to you!" he spat. "I have sent Draco a message and threat he cannot refuse. Once he is within the Manor I will kill you and your wife. And he will be all mine!" Or perhaps reveal the whole plan. Voldemort hardened his face as he just realized he revealed the entire damn plan. Lucius wildly struggled, and managed to tip the chair sideways onto the floor.

"WHY!? WHAT DID YOU SAY TO HIM!?" he shouted. Nagini hissed as she drew up beside him.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Voldemort hissed, suddenly appearing above Lucius. "_Crucio!" _he held a sickening smile as the Malfoy twisted and writhed on the ground. The man desperately clenched his teeth to keep from screaming. He refused to show any further weakness. The pain was so intense he wished his limbs would just explode. The sensation of searing knife blades tearing into his skin was too unbearable. Finally, The Dark Lord let up, disappointed he had not screamed.

"Shame, Lucius. I was hoping you'd scream. I wonder if the other two Malfoys will…" he provoked.

"DON'T TOUCH THEM! I SWEAR IF YOU HURT THEM-"

"What, Lucius?! What? You're tied to a chair and practically crawling onto your deathbed!" he spat, suddenly a centimeter from Lucius's ear. "There is nothing you can do for them!" Voldemort whispered before flying up and leaving the room with a flutter of his robes.

"_Stay with him Nagini, if he attempts an escape and succeeds, bite him." _he hissed in parseltongue. The Dark Lord left with a slam of the door and a sound of a locking spell. Once he heard that door close, Lucius began to struggle against the bonds again while lying sideways on the floor. There were two things he was terrified of. One: Voldemort would go for Narcissa next. Two: He would lie in wait for Draco to slide into his fingers. And it would be all over them.

Bellatrix had gone to the cellar an hour earlier to ensure that Narcissa did not escape, and that she would wake in time. Her sister had woke up, and she was furious. Bellatrix put a silencing spell on the door so her sister's angry shouts and screams wouldn't attract Voldemort too soon.

"YOU'RE A DECIETFUL, LYING, FILTHY-" Narcissa stopped short and looked around, "why are you doing this to your own sister?" she was far from afraid, but Bellatrix knew when the Dark Lord came, she wouldn't dare scream at him.

"It's the Dark Lord's wishes, Cissy, and I will follow them!" she said, seductively speaking about him. Narcissa narrowed her eyes. She had been tied as well, but not to a chair; just her wrists behind her back. If she really wanted to, she could stand up and kick her sister in the face, but she decided to remain calm. The door opened silently due to the charm placed on it, and neither woman saw who approached.

"So you would betray your own family for him?" Narcissa said, animosity pouring out of her voice. Voldemort suddenly came around the corner, startling them. Bellatrix moved closer automatically.

"Leave us, Bellatrix, this shouldn't take too long." he said, his eyes never left Narcissa, who had gone silent, just as Bella predicted. Slowly, and reluctantly, she left; instantly feeling bad about leaving her. The Dark Lord held his wand out, moving his thumb over the surface of it, and staring at Lucius's wife. The woman said nothing, and angrily stared at the ground.

"So much fire in you, Narcissa. Just like Lucius, after I told him…" The Dark Lord took a different approach to dealing with her. Mrs. Malfoy's head snapped up.

"Told him what!?" she demanded, voice hard and still undaunted. Voldemort smiled evilly and sauntered around the room.

"There is nothing you can do about it anyway. Why would I waste time in telling you? After all, you would be dead before you could help him." he hissed. Narcissa jerked against the bonds.

"What!? What?! Enough with the riddles and tell me what you have done to my husband and son!" she screamed. Voldemort clicked his tongue in disapproval.

"You're being unnecessarily difficult, Narcissa."

"Let's see if I can douse your fires…" he whispered, eagerly stepping forward. Narcissa wrenched back as he stood but two feet from her. Pointing his wand toward her, he said,

"_Crucio." _How much like Lucius she was, biting forcing herself not to cry out as she writhed in agony against the stone floor. A few times a light groan would come from her, but she did not scream. After several utterings, she managed to spit out,

"Stop. Please." the words were very forced, but controlled. The Dark Lord instantly lowered his wand, slightly impressed by her fortitude. Narcissa went limp in relief, then scrambled to sit up.

"Impressive, but you'll have to do much, much better than that." he turned to the door and removed the silencing charm, and with intense concentration to achieve the most pain from the curse, he said again,

"_Crucio!" _Narcissa could not hold together on this one. Letting out a shriek that would put a Banshee to shame, she tore the air with an ear-splitting scream. Voldemort even flinched in surprise at the intensity of it. It wasn't a quick scream either, Narcissa twisted wildly on the ground as The Dark Lord walked back and forth in front of her. She began to sweat, and feel herself slip into unconsciousness. Finally, Voldemort let up, a satisfied grin on his face.

"That was sure to get Lucius's attention." he said, then without another word, left the cellar. Narcissa's vision grew hazy, and before she knew it, she was unconscious.

**(Malfoy Manor)**

Draco felt as if he was walking into the depths of hell, rather than the road to his own house. Occasionally, he would freeze and Harry would have to encourage him forward. Malfoy whimpered and dragged his lead like feet closer. From the distance, he could see Bellatrix in the window, watching.

"Oh no, my aunt Bellatrix is watching from the window…" Draco moaned.

"It's all right, I'm under the Invisibility Cloak, she can't see me." Harry assured.

"That's not what I was worried about."

"Oh…"

"I was thinking now, the fact that I _don't _have my wand is a very bad thing." Malfoy said through the corner of his mouth, incase Bellatrix could somehow see him talking, even through the darkness.

"It's all right. I told you I have a plan." Harry reassured again. Draco grimaced.

"Potter?"

"Yeah?"

"I swear to god if this fails I will personally kill you." he threatened. Harry smirked.

"This shouldn't. If all goes well I will follow you and hope Bellatrix leaves. Then you and I can fight V- You Know. Draco shivered.

"What is she doesn't leave? And what if you can't get my wand back?" he asked. Harry tried to lighten his footsteps and make them quieter as they approached the house. He seriously considered removing them and throwing them into the hedges.

"Trying not to think of that." he responded.

Harry was close enough to Draco to see that he was trembling as he made his way up the black marble steps. Bellatrix had disappeared from the door, probably to warn Voldemort of his arriving prize. Wherever she had gone, Harry was on edge. Reaching out for the doorknob, Draco froze again.

"I can't do this!" Harry could almost feel the panic in his tone.

"You can, come on I'm right with you." he had his wand drawn and ready. After almost an eternity, Draco finally turned the knob and opened the door, opening it wide enough for Harry, but also making it look normal. He turned his back for a moment to close the door. The house was dreadfully quiet, and the two boys feared for the worse, but Harry needed to stay strong. Strong for Draco. They could no longer communicate to one another without looking suspicious. Slowly moving through each room to find someone, the boys began to feel as if this whole thing was a trap.

As they moved into the Dining Hall, Draco's heart nearly stopped beating at the sight of Voldemort. He stood at the end of the room. The tables and chairs had been removed. The moonlight shining through the great windows added an unnecessary oppressive feeling of dread. The Dark Lord outstretched his arms and gave a lecherous grin.

"Draco, I am pleased you decided to accept my offer." his tone was slightly raspy, and had Harry feeling instantly ill. Malfoy took a small breath.

"You mean threat? I had no choice! Now where are my parents!?" he said, his voice stronger than it had been in a while. Voldemort seemed to pick up on his audacity. Harry had to do something. Moving close enough to Draco's ear, his lips almost brushing it, he whispered,

"Tone it down a little, he suspects something." he had barely even whispered it, but Malfoy seemed to hear and understand. Harry hoped that even from across the length of the Dining Hall, Voldemort hadn't heard it.

"Such boldness, my dragon, perhaps before I _release _them I will give you a lesson in respect." Harry wanted to puke, but wasn't perfectly sure what The Dark Lord was implying. Draco took a step back, subtly warning Harry before he did so.

"What do you mean?" he asked. A truly devious smile stretched across his lips. The Dark Lord took a step forward.

"Why Draco, have you forgotten all about our little game? Shame, boy, shame. This time, Draco, when I take you, you will last the entire time, and we will be completely uninterrupted until the end…" Malfoy almost stumbled against Harry as they kept moving back. A sensation in Harry compelled him to turn his head. Bellatrix was slinking closer to Draco, wand drawn, and ready.

"_Expelliarmus!" _Harry hissed, still under the cloak. The Black sister's wand went flying from her hand and rolled right up behind Draco. Both Bellatrix and Voldemort looked absolutely dumbfounded. Malfoy was at a loss of what to do or say as he whipped his head around to look at Bellatrix. Harry took a chance and whipped the cloak off of him, startling both dark wizards.

"Potter!?" Bellatrix shrieked. Voldemort seemed amused.

"Harry Potter, and what do I owe the pleasure of this? No matter, now I can kill two birds with one stone, or kill one and capture the other…" he chuckled. Using the his wand to lift Bellatrix's, Harry handed it to Draco as they stood back to back. Harry facing Voldemort, Malfoy facing his unarmed aunt.

"No, Voldemort, you will haven't won, and you will not kill me!" Harry said, threateningly pointing the wand at him.

"HOW DARE YOU USE HIS NAME YOU FILTHY HALF-BLOOD!" Bellatrix shrieked, stepping forward. Draco gave a warning, only to have her cackling manically. Voldemort laughed, slowly, eerily…

"Harry Potter, Boy Who Lived, you _will _die…" he took a step forward. "_Crucio!" _He aimed at Potter. The two boys dodged the curse by jumping in opposite directions. Bellatrix lunged backwards to avoid being hit. This seemed to enrage Voldemort as he came after Harry, a winding green light shooting from his wand. Harry counteracted in time, and managed to hold the balance. Draco trained his wand on Bellatrix.

"_Stupefy!" _he shouted, the wand accepted the spell, but refused to make a direct hit to its master. Lazily dodging the attack, his aunt glared at Draco.

"Come on now wittle Draco!" she giggled as she ran down a nearby hall. Malfoy followed her, hoping to at least immobilize her so that he may assist Harry in dealing with Voldemort.

Bellatrix didn't seem too worried about fighting her own nephew, and seemed more like she was enjoying taunting him. Continuing to dodge his spells, she cackled hysterically and hid behind a pillar.

"You're going to die, Draco!" she called out. Malfoy shook his head knowingly, The Dark Lord would do far worse than kill him.

"Shut up." Draco was going to shout, then decided to just mumble. Bellatrix whirled around the other side of the pillar.

"Come on, boy, do your worse. It will amuse me!" she hissed, striding forward. Draco gave another stunning spell, and again the wand seemed to refuse his demands. Suddenly Bellatrix whipped out another wand and started flinging spells at him in rapid fire. Malfoy quickly lunged behind a pillar and peered around the other side. The wand…the wand she was holding looked familiar. A spell took a big chunk out of the pillar as he moved his head just in time. Jumping back into view, he hurled a powerful stunning spell at her in order to look more closely at the wand in her hand. He almost faltered in the spell as he recognized it. The wand belonged to _his mother! _

"Where did you get my mother's wand!" Draco shouted, angrily, hostility radiating from him. Bellatrix laughed like a deranged person and tried to disarm him. It worked, Malfoy's anger clouded him for a moment and the wand flew from his grasp.

"_Accio wand!" _she cried. Her wand sailed through the air right into her hand as she pointed them both threateningly at her nephew.

"Now what will do you, boy!?" she taunted. Draco couldn't really believe that his own aunt was daring to injure him like this. Then again he could believe it. A powerful spell suddenly hit him in the back as he fell forward against the floor, instantly knocked unconscious. Bellatrix jumped and stepped back. Voldemort came from the doorway and smiled.

"What of the Potter boy!?" she demanded, softly.

"He is immobilized, for now. I will kill him later perhaps, after Draco watches the death of his parents." he said, mainly to himself. Many things had now presented itself before him. "Bellatrix, take Draco to his room, I will visit him later as well…" he ordered her, slowly beginning to walk away, piecing together his plan. The Black sister gave a discouraged face and moved over to her unconscious nephew. Mumbling to herself once again, she momentarily forgot she could use a spell to move him, and instead lifted him into her arms. Grumbling angrily to herself, she made her way to Draco's room.

Draco's room sat at the dead end of the corridor. The door was suspiciously ajar, but Bellatrix was too busy arguing with herself to notice. The moment she passed through the door, her speech stopped. The room felt heavy…eerie…like something was in the darkest corner…watching. Bellatrix even shuddered as she quickly moved to the bed and placed her nephew on it. Turning around, she was distracted by a rather creepy crack in the wall. It was long, black, and spidery. Approaching it, Bellatrix tried to peer into it. It was too dark and narrow to see into, but…there was something on the other side…it sounded like a mad man speaking in terrified gibberish…and rushing water. The water sound almost consumed the voice, but she could still hear it. Suddenly the sounds of shuffling, almost right against the crack compelled Bellatrix to run from the room as quickly as possible. Once she was outside the door, it slammed shut, spooking her, and a deep echoing creak of wood had her sprinting down the corridor.

**(World of the Undead)**

Outside the granite walls of the immense acropolis, sheets of heavy rain poured down on the dead forest, and unrelenting thunder threatened to crack the sky. The sky of course was now an ebony color, and the candles within the fortress supplied the light that the sun could not give. Lyra stood to the side of the great bay window, and looked down upon the deserted lands. The Demon was now clad in a sea of red and black Chinese robes. The towering headdress would've pulled down anyone else's head, but she was used to wearing such, and was far more resistant against mere discomfort. Her face was powdered until milk white and her bottom lip crimson in the middle. Slowly, her head turned to look at the translucent orb sitting on the altar. Draco Malfoy had been captured once more, and he lay upon his own bed, awaiting Lord Voldemort.

"Pity." Lyra whispered. A door to her right opened. Revain strode in, taking a glance at the orb, then to her.

"We will not intervene?" he asked. Lyra shook her head, slowly, so that she would not tip the headdress.

"We will. We have no choice this time. We must save the four of them. And this time, I intend to annihilate this man." she whispered. Revain nodded.

"This will not take many reinforcements. You and I, I presume?" he gave a small smile. Lyra nodded carefully.

"Travel there, and warn both Draco, and the Potter boy."

"What of his parents?" he inquired. Lyra's head suddenly gestured to the orb. Revain looked to it, and noticed something odd. A man cloaked in black was making his way to the manor.

"That man intends to set things right with the woman he made a vow to. A vow to protect her son. I must say that he fails greatly in his duties. Selling Draco to the Snake Man to save himself is beyond selfish." she said.

"Can we trust him?"

"For now, let him run his course. But I will not allow Draco to suffer anymore. Perhaps…it is time to remove him. Permanently, if that is truly what it takes to protect him." Lyra turned around fully and stood before the orb. Watching carefully, she was not disturbed when fluffy white dog collided into the lounge and evolved into a pale, skinny, blonde girl nearly six years of age.

"Are we going to keep him here?" she smiled brightly. Her eyes were like many icicles fused together to form a circle, with a black stone in the center. There was a silence, interrupted by a violent crack of thunder.

"It has reached that decision. Commence the operation. I shall arrive within the hour." she said.

**(Dumbledore's Office) **

Hermione, usually polite and calm, barged through Dumbledore's office door, frantically looking around for him. Ron wasn't far behind, neither was Ginny.

"Hermione!" she whispered urgently. "Calm down! This is Dumbledore's office you're barging into." she said. Granger wasn't too concerned about that at the moment. She had just received Harry's message approximately twenty minutes prior. It had read,

Everyone,

I'm sorry I ran off like that. But I have to help Malfoy, and I'm sorry I didn't tell any of you, but I knew you would have stopped me if I had. If you come looking for me, I will most likely be at Hogwarts.

Harry Potter

But of course Hermione, Ron and Ginny did not search the entire castle for Harry. That would've been a waste of time. Ron had in fact taken the Marauder's Map from Harry's trunk, just in case. He hadn't told either of them yet. Hermione frantically continued to call out for Dumbledore, as well as search his office. Fawkes was missing as well, normally it indicated that the Headmaster was elsewhere. As the two girl's searched the office, Ron surreptitiously pulled out the map, and scanned for Malfoy and Harry's name.

Hermione and Ginny gave up searching. Ginny moved past the desk, and paused. A note lay on the surface. _Oh. _She thought, after she saw that it was only the one they had sent to him from earlier. Hermione sighed heavily, nervously, and sat down on the steps. Ron looked perhaps a dozen times. Harry wasn't in Hogwarts, on the grounds, or even near the place.

"Ron," Hermione's voice said lowly, "is that the Marauder's Map?" Ron cringed and turned around.

"Uh, yeah. I took it from Harry's luggage. I thought if he was in Hogwarts, we could find him with this a lot easier." he explained guiltily. Ginny stepped forward.

"Well then? Is he here?" she pressed.

"No, I've checked about a dozen times. Neither of them are here." Hermione forced nervous tears back, glancing at Ginny. She wasn't crying, so why should she?

After leaving the office, sulking, the three teenagers dragged their feet back to the courtyard.

"I wonder where he could've gone." Ginny wondered aloud.

"There's only two places he would be. And he's not in them." Hermione said, shaking her head. Ron had folded the map and tucked it away.

Suddenly, a dark shape among the others caught Ginny's eye. Grabbing onto the both of them, she pointed.

"What's that?" the three stared at the human figure walking swiftly away. The billowing cloaks trailing behind him were deceitful, but Hermione narrowed her eyes, recognizing him.

"I do believe that is Professor Snape!" she whispered urgently.

"Let's follow him!" Ginny suddenly said, beginning to lightly run after the man.

"Ginny, wait!" Ron scolded, running after her. Hermione caught up quickly as they silently stalked him from a safe distance. The three were very surprised he didn't whirl on them and catch them in the act. The dark wizard seemed to have something utterly distracting on his mind.

"What if he apparates? How will we be able to follow him then?" Ron asked Ginny. Hermione turned on her as well.

"And what happens if we don't know where he has gone?" she asked. Ginny glared at both of them, then turned her eyes back to Snape.

"Hope he doesn't?" Ginny shrugged.

The odd trio followed Severus Snape until he arrived at a crossroad. From there, the man simply stood in the center and remained still. The three teens took cover at a distance behind a large hedge.

"Is he going to apparate?" Ron asked, quiet enough that for a moment Ginny and Hermione thought they had imagined his voice.

"If he was going to apparate, he probably would've done it already." Hermione said, never breaking eye contact from his form. Ginny chewed her lip.

"Do you think he knows where Harry is?"

"I have no idea." Ron and Hermione said simultaneously. Suddenly, in the blink of an eye, Snape disappeared. Hermione had seen it, and gasped.

"Where'd he go!?" she shot up. The three stared at the spot in disbelief, then assumed he apparated.

"What are you three doing all the way out here at this hour?" a deep monotonous voice sounded behind them. All of them jumped and wheeled around to face a very disturbed Professor Snape.

"What are _you _doing out here?" Hermione instantly demanded. Severus gave a contempous glare.

"That is none of your business and I have authority over you three so, what are you doing all the way out here at this hour?" he said, continuing to glare at each one. Ginny stepped forward.

"It's none of your business what we're doing." she snapped.

"Ginny." Ron warned in a whisper, nudging her. Snape straightened up as he leered at them.

"You're all coming with me." he said, grabbing both Ron and Hermione, none to gently either. Ginny followed in anger, her hand clamped over her wand.

"Where are you taking us then?" Ron asked, giving a nasty look at Snape. Severus ignored the question for a moment, then answered.

"Back to Hogwarts, where you belong." he answered. Hermione gritted her teeth in anger. Ginny still followed them as they were led back to the grounds. In his mind, Snape thought, _wonderful, a delay in my plan. I hope they're all still alive when I arrive…_


	4. Wretched Fate

**(Malfoy Manor)**

As soon as Draco's eye opened, he immediately scanned for Voldemort. He knew exactly what to expect now. And he wasn't going to be taken this time. Slowly sitting up, to avoid becoming dizzy, the boy listened for anyone. Nothing, it was clear. He jumped in sudden realization that he should probably keep an eye out for Nagini as well. She always seemed to appear seconds before Voldemort did. Looking around the room, he absently felt for the wand that he already knew had probably been taken. Yes, the wand was gone. Draco scowled and went to the window. Unlatching the metal stopper, he pushed it forward and looked around. There was no way to get out, unless he broke his leg jumping.

"Get away from the window, Draco!" a voice bellowed angrily. Malfoy jumped violently and whipped around to face the door. Voldemort stood there, wand out and pointed right at him. A slow and leering smile stretched The Dark Lord's dead lips.

"Back away, and lay on the bed…" he ordered, flicking his wand to close the window. Draco shook his head.

"I will not." he said simply. Voldemort laughed, amused by his stubbornness.

"You will, Draco. Your parents' lives depend on your decisions." the smile disappeared as he took a step forward. Malfoy's eye twitched as he looked down. Examining his options in his head. He really had none anymore. At that moment, he wondered where Potter had gone.

"Where's Potter?" he asked, trying to make it look like he didn't care. The Dark Lord took another step forward and smirked.

"Ah, have you a soft spot for the Potter boy now?" he purred. Malfoy nearly spat.

"No! He was supposed to help me kill you." he muttered the last part. Voldemort took a few more steps forward, Draco moving back a few.

"Kill me?! You and him were going to _kill me!?_" he growled horribly. Suddenly he broke into a long peal of wretched laughter.

"You failed awfully boy. Did you really think you even stood a chance?" he started toward Malfoy. The blonde boy kept backing away, keeping his distance.

"He's going to die because of you. Not that it matters, more importantly, you have two chances to disobey me. I highly advise you not to do so anyway. Because if you do, you can choose which parent I kill first." he hissed, glaring at Draco. Malfoy trembled in rage. How dare he threaten his family! He shook his head again.

"No…no…" he said, unable to think of words.

"Yes, yes!" Voldemort hissed, almost cornering the boy, "you've run out of chances, boy. Now you must submit." he chuckled to himself as he closed in on him, reaching out to stroke his cheekbone. Malfoy cringed and tried to avoid the corpse fingers. The Dark Lord suddenly shot out and clutched him tightly.

"Come on, my child! Time to finish what we started!" he purred.

"NO!" Draco screamed, violently twisting away, and managing to get free. He raced to the door, but Voldemort quickly appeared there, blocking the way. He lashed out and grabbed the boy, jerking him close and crushing his lips against Malfoy's. The blonde Slytherin squealed into his mouth as The Dark Lord's hand pressed against the back of Draco's head to prevent him from escaping. Whipping him around, he forced the boy against the door, his tongue relentlessly attacking the inside of the young man's mouth. Lower, Voldemort's hand crept down the folds of the clothing, and neared the area between his legs. Malfoy moved his leg and struck the hand away, twisting around, he was able to break the lip contact. He gasped for breath and spit onto the ground. The Dark Lord gripped him painfully.

"Am I going to have to restrain you again, boy? Don't make the first mistake already." he panted, aroused by Draco's frantic struggling.

"Stop! Just…stop!" Malfoy gasped desperately for breath. Whirling the boy around in his arms, Voldemort pinned him against his chest and dragged him to the bed.

"No! Please I don't want to do this! Why won't you just stop!?" Draco cried, desperately. Tears had broken down the dam and flowed heavily down his face. He had to gasp for breath instead of normally breathe in and out. Throwing him down on the bed, The Dark Lord towered over him for a moment, admiring his own mercilessness. Malfoy couldn't help but feel significantly weakened by the situation, the threats, and the misery of the failed plan. He laid limp on the bed, teary eyes staring at the wall on the other side. A black spidery crack was seen behind a potted plant. Voldemort smiled lecherously down at the boy as he removed the outer robe. Draco suddenly felt a spark of energy as he jolted off the bed from the other side and wheeled back to face The Dark Lord. The white faced man only sighed and stared at him from the other side of the room.

"Very well Draco, pick, Lucius or Narcissa?" he asked, putting the robe back on. Malfoy felt the color drain from his face, and his stomach churn.

"Wh-what?" he stuttered, though he knew very well what. The Dark Lord frowned and shook his head.

"Pity. I'll pick one out myself." he said, beginning to move to the door. Draco felt his heart falter.

"W-wait!" he cried, weakly. Voldemort opened the door and stepped out. "Wait!" Draco screamed. "Please…" he whimpered. Standing there for an eternity, shaking in fear of what would become of his parents, Malfoy bolted to the door, and opened it. Voldemort stood on the other side, startling the boy.

"This is your last chance. You submit now, or I will lose all patience and force you to watch me kill both of them. Is that understood?" the devious enjoyment was gone, and The Dark Lord was now deadly serious. Malfoy nearly vomited as he nodded stiffly, a few more loose tears pouring down his cheek.

"Good. Now undress." he said, pushing Draco up to the bed. The blonde felt every bit of feeling leave him as he absently unbuttoned his shirt, his mind pounded in terror. _This isn't willing. This isn't willing. _He chanted to himself. At the last button, he froze. Voldemort circled around him in waiting.

"I can't do it…" Draco's voice cracked. A heavy irritated sigh from behind him panicked him further.

"So unfortunate." he said, suddenly Malfoy was whipped around and pushed onto the bed with enough force that he bounced back up a little. Climbing on top of the distressed boy, The Dark Lord yanked the shirt right off him. Leaning down to his ear, he hissed,

"Kick off your shoes." Draco hesitantly complied, hearing them clatter against the marble floor. He removed his socks with his toes. Voldemort's tongue caressed Malfoy's ear, working down until he reached the boy's throat. _I don't want this! I don't want this! Make it stop! Please…._He thought to himself.

It wasn't too long before The Dark Lord began to plunder inside of Draco's mouth, much to the boy's immense shame. He reached up his hands to push him away, but they were quickly pinned beside his head. Whimpering into Voldemort's mouth, the boy began to writhe beneath him, pleasing The Dark Lord immensely. The blonde's suffering was very amusing. Moving back to his ear, he whispered,

"See Draco, this isn't so bad!" he chuckled. Malfoy grimaced, trying to move away. He decided not to amuse the man further by responding. He remained silent. Slowly, the cold fingers worked their way down Draco's arms, then across his chest, down the sides of his abdomen, and onto his hips. Malfoy immediately went with his hands to stop him, but Voldemort grabbed them and pinned them down again.

"Ah, ah, ah, Draco." he said, leaning in close again, he whispered in a truly lascivious tone, "be a good boy." it nearly caused Malfoy to vomit. The hands went back down the same trail as before, taking care to run up and down his sides. The boy closed his eyes and tried to block out everything. His leg jerked, and inadvertently rubbed against The Dark Lord's. Voldemort's fingers, agonizingly slow, removed the belt from his place, sliding it out from the rings. He tossed it carelessly to the ground. Tucking his fingers beneath the hem of the pants, he ran them around the circumference. Draco clenched his fists, feeling absolutely ridiculous for keeping his arms in the pinned position The Dark Lord had left them. He heard the pants come undone, and automatically, he clenched his legs together.

"My lord, I beg you!" Malfoy uttered. No answer as the man slowly slid them down the boy's legs. Draco's eyes were still closed. He was too terrified to open them.

"On your stomach, Draco." came the stern order. _NO! _He panicked. This was it. The boy refused to turn over, and he trembled in utter revulsion. Impatience radiated from The Dark Lord as he grabbed the boy and flipped him over. Malfoy's breaths came in short little pants now. His body shivered as he felt Voldemort climb on top of him, the cold dead breath hit his ear as the man whispered,

"Feel free to scream!" he purred, reaching a hand down to caress Draco's hip. His hardness was grinding against the blonde's tailbone, sending mixed messages to his body. Malfoy's traitorous body responded to the contact, but his mind greatly spurned the actions. The boy closed his eyes and pushed his face into the satin sheets. The Dark Lord's lips once more touched his ear as he taunted him,

"How does it feel, child, to be violated in your own home? In your own bed?" his tongue teased the folds of his ear, and he quickly turned his head. Big mistake, for Voldemort licked over his cheek with his vile tongue and kissed the blonde's temple. _I would rather be dead. _He thought morbidly. It didn't seem that terrible right now, considering what he was forced to face. The Dark Lord rose up and straddled the boy's hips; he began to remove his robes. Reaching into his pocket, he drew his wand and flicked it to the windows. Instantly, the room became pitch black, and Draco began to fear for the worse now. The cloaks of The Dark Lord hit his back, and tickled the skin as they were dragged off him. Malfoy then realized that Voldemort sure was taking his sweet time. The thought terrified him. The things he could do to the boy with an infinite amount of time. Involuntarily, he whimpered, making the older man chuckle sadistically.

"You're awfully quiet Draco, have you changed your mind?" he purred, leaning down to taunt him. Malfoy cringed into the mattress and remained silent. Suddenly, a boney finger began to drag itself from the nape of his neck, down to his tailbone. The blonde shivered uncontrollably and buried his face in his hands.

"Why?" he said, the sound was muffled from the mattress and his hands. Voldemort heard it nonetheless. Also, he ignored it.

"Now, here's where the fun begins…" his tone was raspy with lust. Malfoy cringed and buried his face further, thinking of his parents. Trying his best to block out The Dark Lord as he removed the last of Draco's clothing and began to press against him. _This can't be happening…It can't go _this far! _Why is he __doing this!? What could he possibly gain!? _The blonde's panicked thoughts couldn't distract him from the intense pain brought on as Voldemort thrust deep within him. Draco gasped and whined in pain, more than ever now, he wished he were dead. The feeling was unbearable and humiliating. He couldn't believe the madness had gone this far. Draco's breathing came in staggering and hitched pants, and he eventually had to turn his head to take in more air. Voldemort's face quickly leaned in to cruelly tease him.

"Come on now, Angel face, I want to hear you scream!" his nails dug into Malfoy's hips as he rocked back and forth within him. The boy's entire body trembled in utter revulsion and his breaths were completely uneven. His own fingers clawed the bedspread to relieve some of his pain. It did very little to help, gripping it so tightly his own hands began to cramp. Eventually, The Dark Lord got a rhythm going, and the pain subsided, and now the humiliation

doubled. Draco caught himself almost moaning in pleasure as Voldemort rubbed over the same spot. Malfoy couldn't help it, his body was a traitor. Suddenly, he removed himself from Draco, and the boy felt him get up. _Is it over?! Is this finally over!? Is he stopping!? MY GOD PLEASE SOMEONE SAY HE'S_ _STOPPING! _He thought desperately, though the pessimistic side of him told his mind that it was far from over. It was pitch black, and Malfoy had to rely on sound and feeling to judge where he was. Hands grabbed his hips and rolled him onto his back. Draco took the some of the bed sheets with him as he realized his fingers were still tightly intertwined in them. The mattress sank as The Dark Lord climbed back on and

straddled Malfoy's hips. The boy clutched the sheets over him. Voldemort yanked them away and tossed them aside. Bending forward, he assaulted the blonde's lips and plunged his tongue deep into his mouth, massaging Draco's tongue with his. Malfoy's body cringed and his tongue tried to repel his, but instead it only seemed to arouse the man further. Suddenly Draco yelped in terror as he thought he felt Voldemort's uncovered hardness press against his own. Scrambling desperately away, he fell off the bed and rolled underneath. The Dark Lord roared with laughter from above.

"You'll get used to it boy! I swear to that!" he bent down and started feeling around for the boy. Draco couldn't see the hand, but he could almost feel it grabbing him. Three loud knocks on the door startled Malfoy, but he was soon thankful when the light in his room returned, and the hand retreated.

"Who is it?!" Voldemort growled. He quickly robed himself and threw Draco's clothes to the other

side of the bed, out of sight.

"Bellatrix, my lord!" Bellatrix called seductively.

"What do you want?" Voldemort said, standing near the door.

"There is a piece of new that has reached my ears that I think you'll be very interested to know!"

Draco peeked under the quilt from under the bed and watched as The Dark Lord opened the door, shut it,

and then put a locking spell on it. _Damn! _He thought. Then his body recoiled in humiliation. He could not

believe that The Dark Lord had just raped him, again. Curling up under the bed, he saw his clothes on the

other side. Creeping over, he pulled them under, and began to dress himself, quietly sobbing.

**(Somewhere in Malfoy Manor)**

Harry paced the small room for hours. The door was heavy and made of metal, it was also charmed, and the room was small enough that the heat from his body caused the temperature to spike. It felt like a muggle sauna. He wondered what was happening to Draco at the moment. He had a pretty good idea. Harry grunted angrily and pounded his fists against the wall. It was disgusting, even if he hated Malfoy, he believed that he most certainly did not deserve that type of punishment. The boy thought of his friends, and how he wouldn't be able to say good-bye, properly of course. They would be devastated. Harry just ran off, left them an odd note, and died in the Malfoy's home by Lord Voldemort.

Just then, a wretched idea entered Harry's mind. Maybe….maybe this all was just some insane scheme to lure Harry to Voldemort so that he could kill him. Maybe the images in his head weren't real, and Draco had just been pretending. Harry violently shook his head. Absurd! No one could act that serious about it if it wasn't real. Draco was broken, and haunted for real. Every reaction of his was purely true. After all, why would Malfoy stoop to crying in front of Harry if it wasn't true? Harry sat down in a corner and tried to cool off. He knew his wand had been taken by Voldemort. He had searched himself for it a dozen times. _He's probably on his way right now to kill me. I wouldn't put __it past him. Well then since I'm dying I won't be able to help Malfoy anymore. _A low growl distracted him from his thoughts. Harry looked up at the door, and narrowed his eyes. It was open. But that wasn't it, through to the other side, was a tall dog. In fact, it was the exact dog that Harry had pursued into the Forbidden Forest. Instinctively, he reached for this wand, then remembered he didn't have it. Slowly, the dog approached him, it's body was mangled and mutilated, and only one eye worked. The animal passed through a shadow, and as it did, it disappeared. Harry gasped quietly, believing he had gone mad. Suddenly, a man took a step into the room where it was lit. Harry gasped louder and shot up.

"Who are you!?" he asked. Then, he knew who it was. "R-Revain!? Here? How did you get here? Why aren't you? Why?" He couldn't even finish asking one question. Revain gave a wide smile, his vampire teeth were gone.

"None of those things matter now, Harry. What matters is the orders of my master. I have to get you out of the manor." he said. Harry glared and backed up.

"I am not going anywhere with you, you killed Pansy Parkinson…and who is your master?" part of Revain's face was cloaked in darkness, and it disturbed Harry.

"Killing that girl was an order of my master. And I refuse to reveal my master to you. Even if you did help Draco in any way you could."

"Why would- wait, how do you know I helped Draco?" Harry began to grow more and more

confused, and creeped out.

"I can't explain everything here and now, please just come with me." Revain said, stepping forward. Harry stumbled back.

"If I had my wand…" he mumbled.

"If you had your wand, Harry, I wouldn't be here helping you. And if you had it right now, no spell in the entire wizarding world could harm me. I am no wizard, I am no vampire, I am no human."

"What are you saying!?" Harry demanded, becoming frightened.

"I've said this before, I cannot explain everything to you here and now. Please, come with me…" he said. Harry trembled, and hung his head. He had no choice but to trust the man…thing. Following him out of the room, he looked up and said,

"You're going to kill me, aren't you?" his tone was stoic and merely wondering. Revain shook his head.

"No. You have tried to help Draco, even though you failed. It was enough to spare your life from Lyra's wrath." Lyra! That name, Harry heard it before. Draco had whispered it in Dumbledore's office, when they had their secret little conversation.

"Lyra, she's your master? Isn't she?" Harry jumped to conclusions as Revain looked around for anyone.

"Yes, how bright of you." he said, not sarcastically at all. "I have a debt to pay to her. She saved me from being hung at the gallows in 1627." he said, his eyes in a daze, as if remembering something long forgotten.

"Gallows? 1627?" Harry was confused once more. Revain shook his head.

"Oh, forget that. It's not important."

"Who are you?" Harry asked, suddenly stopping. Revain sighed in irritation.

"Harry, please. I promise I will explain everything to you once we are far enough from the house."

"Why?" the strange being shook his head again, suddenly he stared at the front door.

"Someone approaches, let's go out the back way." he suggested.

Hiding behind a pillar, their heads peaked around the corner. The door opened and- Severus

Snape!?

"What in bloody hell is he doing here!?" Harry almost shouted.

"I assume he is going to set right the wrong he did. Come now, we cannot linger." Revain said.

Harry clenched his fist, but submitted and followed the man. His mind flooded with infinite questions.

**(Malfoy Manor)**

Snape kept a close eye out for Nagini, Bellatrix, and Voldemort. No doubt if any of them found him here, he would be bitten, by the snake obviously, or relentlessly questioned, and possibly killed. Lucius and Narcissa would most likely be held prisoner in the cellar. Once he freed them, he would have to save Draco. The Malfoys would probably never trust him again, after all the horror he had put them through. And for what really? A noise startled Severus as he whipped around, wand ready. Nothing was there, thankfully. Even though he didn't come to Malfoy Manor often, he felt something…awfully wrong with the atmosphere. It was cold…and unnaturally quiet. As he moved down the dark corridor to the cellar, Severus wondered how he could get past Voldemort. There was no way he would part from Draco now. And what of Bellatrix? Merely a second pair of eyes and ears for The Dark Lord, as well as Nagini. If the two of them got any sign of Snape being here, it would rouse suspicion. Perhaps he could free Lucius and Narcissa and the three of them would prove more difficult to handle. Unlikely, their wands had probably been confiscated. Not to mention a severe lack of trust would complicate things.

"Well well!" said a female voice behind him. Snape stopped and turned slowly, his wand pointed at her. Bellatrix slinked down the corridor like a cat. Her dark eyes staring at the man.

"What do we have here? Severus…what are you doing down here? More importantly, _why _are you here?" she whispered seductively, circling him, passing in and out of his vision.

"I could almost ask you the same thing." Snape said, very unsure of what to say. One wrong thing and it could all backfire in his face. Bellatrix recoiled in distrust.

"Aren't you supposed to be at Hogwarts? Hmm? You are supposed to keep an eye on

Dumbledore." she hissed. Severus glared at her.

"And since when do I take orders from you?" he said. Her face twisted into an expression of rage. A hiss behind him indicated Nagini's arrival, and perhaps Voldemort's soon. Snape glanced back and eyed the snake. She was curled up on the ground, her head angled for an attack.

"Severus…" the cold voice he dreaded was heard. The Dark Lord stepped out from the shadows. His face was unreadable, but if he could tell one thing, Voldemort was not happy to see him.

"I do believe I gave you orders to stay within Hogwarts and prevent Albus Dumbledore from

leaving." he hissed. Nagini slithered to her master, and he lifted her around his shoulders. Severus had been caught, perhaps nothing could get him out of this snag. Suddenly, and most unexpectedly, a blast rang out from down from the corridor. Bellatrix wheeled around. Voldemort stared, his face trembling in anger. He began to stride forward down the hall, very quickly, wand drawn. _Perhaps Draco is making an escape? _Snape thought. The moment Voldemort disappeared around the corner, Severus pointed his wand at Bellatrix and said,

"_Petrificus Totalus_!" immediately, the Black Sister froze, and fell to the ground and he darted down the corridor to the cellar. Hoping the Malfoys would still be alive.

Nearly tearing off the door, he looked around the darkened room. The Lumos spell illuminating the walls in an eerie glow.

"Severus? Is that you?" a voice called out. Snape whipped around until he saw what appeared to be Lucius stumbling into the light. "Am I hallucinating?" he asked, mainly himself. Severus shook his head.

"Where's Narcissa?" he asked. Lucius's head fell, he looked at the ground. "Is she dead?" Snape stepped forward. Mr. Malfoy's head snapped up.

"She's here. But where's Draco?" he asked.

"I don't know, I am going to get him next, now come on, before The Dark Lord returns and the body binding spell wears off of Bellatrix." Snape urged, growing impatient, and rather concerned. Suddenly, Narcissa stumbled out from the darkness. Her eyes were redder than hell, and her face was a mask of fury.

"Where is my son?" she growled.

"Narcissa, please, I save him if I can get you two out of here."

"I will not leave until I have him." she spat. Severus's fingers began to curl into a frustrated fist.

"I swore an oath to you, Narcissa, and Unbreakable Vow. I intend to save him." he said. Whatever it was in that sentence, Narcissa's face softened and she nodded.

"Very well." she mumbled. Lucius straightened up and took her hand as he followed Snape out of the cellar.


	5. Possessed

**(Dumbledore's Office)**

Hermione drummed her fingers against her arm as she stood in Dumbledore's office. She couldn't believe Snape had caught them! Nonetheless even detected them! She replayed the scene in her mind a dozen times, trying to figure out where they had gone wrong. Maybe one of them stepped on a twig? Ron sat on the floor, tired of standing, his face lazily slouched in his hand. Ginny anxiously paced the office, just as irritated as Hermione. This was serious, Harry could've been in a deadly situation and possibly died all because of stupid Snape.

"The bloody git! I swear if Harry's dead because of him, I'll kill him!" Ginny seethed. Hermione clenched her jaw.

"I still don't see how he even knew we were following him." she mumbled. Ron shrugged, his mind working too fast on his thoughts to respond. The door opened just then and Dumbledore calmly strode in.

"Good evening." he said to them. Ginny immediately wheeled on him.

"Professor Dumbledore where is Harry?" she asked, the words flying from her mouth as if they had burned her tongue. The Headmaster went silent and looked as if he didn't even know who she was.

"Miss Weasley, I assure you, Harry Potter is quite safe." he said. Ginny felt her heart flutter, hoping he was safe, and trying to trust the words of the Headmaster.

"Where is he?" Ron asked, rising to his feet. Dumbledore shook his head.

"I might as well tell you the whole story, after all I know you three will have an abundance of questions nonetheless." taking a seat in his chair, the three of them stood on the other side and waited.

"Earlier this evening, I was visited by none other than Ciel Revain-"

"Revain!?" the three of them shrieked at the same time. Dumbledore, half expecting it, raised his hand to silence them.

"Please allow me to continue. Now as I was saying, he appeared in my office, not through the entrance, nor by apparating. Instead, he suddenly appeared right before my desk, startling me immensely. I told him I was going to immediately have him sent to Azkaban prison, when my curiosity got the better of me. He shook his head, and told me that he had a confession. He said to me, 'Albus Dumbledore. I am no wizard, or vampire, I am not even of human origin. None of the rules or laws or any amount of disciplinary action can hinder or apply to me'. I was greatly confused by this, and asked why he had murdered the girl, Pansy Parkinson. He told me it was an order of his master, and he had a debt to pay and therefore could not refuse. I believed him to be a Death Eater. Out of extra security, I asked him to reveal his left arm. He gave a me a strange look, but complied. There was nothing there except bleached bone with the skin clinging onto it. I was disturbed, but then he spoke. He said, 'I have come to you to ascertain that you do not complicate things. Your student, Harry Potter has gone to Malfoy Manor in an attempt to kill Voldemort.

Draco Malfoy has gone as well. His plan will result in failure, therefore I am to liberate him from his doom. I ask that you do not interfere. I will bring him back unharmed'." Dumbledore took a rather large breath and stopped speaking for a moment.

"But-but…" Hermione struggled for words.

"Where is Revain now? And how is Harry? Is he all right?" Ron asked.

"Where did Snape go? Why did he leave tonight?" Ginny asked. Dumbledore looked overwhelmed as his eyes widened in surprise.

"Revain is freeing Harry, I am certain of this. Harry should be all right if he stays with Revain. _Professor _Snape, Miss Weasley, has confessed to me as well. He betrayed Draco to Voldemort. He wishes to resolve the wrong he has done. Professor Snape has gone to Malfoy Manor." he explained further. The three of them felt as if their bodies had been filled with lead, and could no longer move. Slowly moving the steps, the sat down beside one another, staring at the ground and trying to make sense of everything.

"It is as difficult to explain as it is to understand." Dumbledore said behind them. None of them said anything for a few moments. Only Fawkes filled the silence with low and mournful sounds. Finally, Ron stood and looked at him.

"I still don't understand, why is Harry helping Malfoy? I mean, what happened?" he asked.

Dumbledore's head shook.

"I am not certain. And I do not think Draco wants his incidents to be known all over the school." he said. Ron blushed and sat down, feeling embarrassed. Hermione stared into the open flame and wondered about Harry, and about Draco.

**(Malfoy Manor)**

Harry had watched in awe as Revain had caused an explosion in the middle of the room, without magic or a wand. As soon as he did, he grabbed the boy and told him to make for the raised hill by the forest. Harry obeyed, reluctantly. Once out in the open, he could not help but feel vulnerable, exposed, and eyes watching him. He wondered if there were Death Eaters around the manor. On top of the hill, Harry had pressed himself against the ground, his eyes waiting and watching for Revain. A shape moved from the back of the house, but it was not Revain. Or perhaps it was…yes it was. He had changed back into the shape of the tall Doberman. Harry let out a hesitant sigh of relief, hoping nothing had gone wrong. When Revain had reached Harry, he crouched down, much like a dog,

and spoke,

"Bad news, Voldemort knows you have escaped, the good news is Snape has freed Draco's parents. The neutral news, Lyra is coming." the dog's leg was against Harry's arm, and he felt Revain quiver after he delivered the last piece of news.

"And just what exactly, does that mean?" he asked.

"It means this has gone far enough. She is going to end this once and for all." he answered, his ears constantly moved around. Suddenly a noise in the bushes compelled him to shoot of the ground and whip around. Harry jumped violently as well and whirled around to look. A rather small and fluffy white dog emerged from the underbrush. Revain gave a relieved sigh and his head drooped.

"Anna, what the hell are you doing here?" he asked. The white dog's tail fell.

"I came to assist you!" it said, it's voice sounded like a little girl. Harry became greatly confused.

"Who is this?" he asked. Revain shook his head.

"Anna, she is with Lyra as well." Harry moved to sit with his legs crossed.

"I honestly don't know what's going on anymore." he admitted.

"That makes two of us." he said, as he finished, he heard a sound in the woods, but Harry did not. Anna heard it as well. The two exchanged looks and snuck off to the side.

"Hey, who's going to be the one to get Drac-" Harry froze as he noticed the two had left. For a moment he felt a stab of betrayal, but then assumed they were scouting. Just then, very deep growl chilled him to the bone. Harry jumped to his feet and wheeled around. And none other then Fenrir Greyback approached, a devious leer across his face. Immediately, Potter reached for his wand, then cursed when he remembered it had been taken.

"Well, well, look at what we have here…" he snarled, stopping a few feet from him. "Boy, The Dark Lord told me would try to escape him, I'm glad I will be the one to return you." he said, taking a step forward. Harry took one back.

"What do you mean? How did you know I was here?"

"Shut up, or I'll give you a little nip, heh heh…" Greyback suddenly moved forward to grab Harry. Suddenly a feral snarl tore the air and a huge black shape pounced on Fenrir. Large, white teeth sank into his shoulder and Harry realized the shape was Revain. Greyback howled in pain as he tried to grab the hound pulling his body apart. Revain was far too powerful, and with a yank, he sent them both tumbling down the cliff. Harry had leapt out of the way and watched from above. Anna suddenly crouched beside

him. "My apologies for abandoning you, but we had to make an immediate ambush." she apologized. Harry nodded.

"Uh, yeah, it's all right…" he whispered, staring after the two. Revain wasted no time in tearing Greyback's limbs apart. Luckily, the gloom obscured Harry's vision, and he could not see the gore of the murder. But Anna could.

After a few minutes, Harry heard him return to the hill. Half of the hound was soaked in blood. Harry watched as Revain reverted back into his humanoid form.

"What now?" he asked. Revain looked to the manor.

"We wait."

**(Inside Malfoy Manor)**

Draco opened his eyes. He was on his bed, but fully clothed. He didn't care if Voldemort came back and shouted at him for putting his clothes back on. All he wanted to do was die now. Every time he thought of his horrid predicament he felt his heart sink. He was trapped here, as Voldemort's slave, and if he disobeyed, his parents paid the price. Potter's plan had failed. But he wasn't upset with him so much as he was himself. The guilt and feelings of dread swelled in him, making him ill with insanity. He dreaded those footsteps of The Dark Lord outside his door, when he came back and proceeded to have his way with Draco. Malfoy cringed and rolled over to face the door. Beside the door was a spider crack. It had been there since the night he was alone in the manor, and plagued by disturbing events. Just then, something clicked, Malfoy sat up. It was Lyra. Lyra had caused all the disturbances that night. But why? Was she trying to warn him somehow? Maybe she knew all this was going to happen before it even started. Draco sighed and fell

back down. It was all too confusing to process at the moment. His arms still hurt from where Voldemort had tightly gripped him. But the worst part was that he would never feel clean again. Tainted, he was. Rubbing his arm, the boy continued to lie there, broken.

Lyra stood at the door, watching the beautiful child suffer. _Perhaps I should've removed him __earlier…no…It would've crushed him to leave this world. _Her silence was inhuman. No one could stay so still and silent like that, especially since the room itself was oppressively silent. The Asian conical hat had been removed, as well as the elaborate robes. She wore a simple black kimono now. Carefully, she approached the bed. Sitting on the edge, she accidentally made it creak; and Draco nearly leapt out of his skin in terror, shooting up and whipping around to face her. His heart skipped a few beats as he took an

immense breath. "Oh, my god…I almost died…" he said, he gave a light smile and looked her. Guilt stabbed Lyra as she heard his comment. She knew what she had to do.

"Draco, I can't enough apologize for failing to come to your rescue. We would be here until the end of time." she said, her hand itched to touch him. Malfoy lowered his head.

"You're coming to help me, right?" he looked up, the desperation in his eyes caused them to glitter. Lyra nodded slowly.

"What of my parents? Voldemort said he'd kill them if I went against him!" he cried. Lyra shook her head.

"The man, Severus Snape, has freed them from the cellar." she said. Draco's face looked utterly confused.

"Snape!? Here? He betrayed _me! _Why is he helping now?!" Malfoy snapped. Reaching out a hand, Lyra gripped his shoulder.

"Learn to forgive, Draco. He is setting right the wrong he has done, despite his life being put into danger by doing this." she whispered, her other hand reached out and took hold of his other shoulder. The blonde blushed, feeling foolish.

"I'm sorry." he mumbled, her hands chilled his entire body, and he couldn't hold down a shiver.

"So then, how are you going to save me? Exactly?" he questioned. Lyra removed her hands from his shoulders. One of them gripped his chin, cupping it gently.

"Draco. In order to get you out of here unharmed and prevent recapture, I have to possess you." She said, her bandaged eyes could see right through and witnessed Draco's confused expression.

"P-possess me?" he thought for a moment.

"Yes, however there is one possible casualty. If I do manage to take over your body, there is a chance that your life could slip away while I inhabit your body." Lyra's thumb ghosted over his cheek.

"W-wait," Draco's voice sounded almost child-like in his fear, "you're saying I could…die?" his breath sped up in worry. "Hold on, is that why I 'died' at Hogwarts? Were you trying to possess me then?" his voice cracked and he cleared his throat.

"Yes. I attempted to save you before things escalated, but your resistance made it difficult." Lyra explained. She could hear his heart pounded against his ribcage, and longed to press her ear over it.

"That makes so much sense…" Malfoy said aloud. "How do I- not resist?" he asked.

"Lie completely still and when you experience the sensation do not fight back."

"Right…what does the sensation feel like?"

"An immense pressure on your body, forcing you into whatever it is beneath you." she said,

preparing for Draco's moment of realization. Malfoy jerked back wildly, and stared at her.

"That makes so much sense now!" he almost shouted, "back here, months ago, when I went to bed. Then again at Hogwarts!" the boy trembled, remembering how much it had terrified him. Although, it did little to alleviate the fear despite his knowledge now. Lyra leaned forward and kissed his forehead. The boy froze, and waited, his eyes closing.

"Just relax…" she whispered. Draco shivered, then shook off the feeling. His eyes opened, and Lyra was gone.

"Lyra?" he whispered. He couldn't handle any suspense at the moment. Even though he knew what the sensation was, and it had happened previously, he was petrified that it would happen again. Suddenly, his body was slammed down against the mattress. A heaviness pressed against his torso, and he writhed, his body trying to resist. When he relaxed, the sensation only intensified, and compelled him to resist more. Unintentionally, he let out a whimper. Then, it felt like something was trying to tear open his ribcage. Cold claws sinking into his flesh and ripping him apart, Draco prepared to scream. Then, it was over. The feeling ceased completely, as if it had never happened. Malfoy couldn't feel a thing, it was black, but not eternity black, the type of darkness that occurs when eyes open in a rather dim room. His eyes flicked open, but he wasn't the one who had done it. Someone else was inside of him. He tried to speak, but his body refused to listen to his mind.

"Draco, Draco? Are you all right? Can you see every thing?" Lyra's voice sounded in his head. 'Yes', he tried to say. Instead, he thought the word.

"Yes." it startled him. When he thought, he could hear it, when he tried to speak nothing happened. The whole feeling like was watching everything you do through your own eyes, but you can't control a thing.

"Good. By the way, when you think a response, only I can hear it. No one else. Since you cannot control your speech any longer, it will have to be mental." she said.

"Right." Draco thought.

"You won't be able to feel a thing." Lyra said, and with that, she sat up and rose from the bed, making her way to the door. The boy felt awkward, watching himself do all these things without any control. Lyra opened the door and stepped out, looking side to side for anyone. No one was there, suspiciously. She closed the door and began to move down the corridor. Then, a hiss interrupted her steps. Lyra turned to see a very large snake curled up near the door. Draco panicked for a moment. Nagini suddenly lashed out and tried to bite the throat of the boy, when suddenly Lyra, even faster, grabbed Nagini by the head, spun her around like a lasso and threw her against the window. The glass cracked, and the

snake plummeted to the ground below. _Holy shi….._Malfoy thought. Lyra didn't respond to him as he turned away and continued to leave.

The corridor was lit with bright lanterns, but when Lyra passed them, they went out. _I'm starting __to have second thoughts about this…_Draco thought. Lyra quickly made her way down the stairs, and began to locate the door. Suddenly, Malfoy's body was hit with a Stunning Spell from behind. Lyra stopped, and turned around. Rage swam around her like a thick, muggy cloud. Draco could see his aunt's face. She looked slightly unsure as to why her spell hadn't immobilized him.

"Come a little closer and try that again." Lyra said, though it was in Draco's voice. Bellatrix snarled, forgetting her uncertainty and strode forward, flicking her wand and sending a spell down the corridor. Malfoy could see the green light tunneling toward him. It struck him, or Lyra at the moment, square in the chest, but she barely flinched. As soon as Bellatrix was within range, something odd happened. Draco's aunt stopped, and seemed to choke. Her hands slowly went to her throat, believing her tight neckline was to blame. It wasn't. Lyra's eyes narrowed in on the woman, and she suffocated her without so much as blinking. Bellatrix urgently tried to gasp for breath, but nothing came. Desperate, she fell to the floor, gasping, panting and struggling to breathe. _Lyra, what are you doing? _Even Draco was furious at the Death Eaters, he didn't _really _want his aunt to die. _Lyra, Lyra! Stop please! What are you doing? _He tried to talk to her. She seemingly ignored him, or maybe she really couldn't hear him. Bellatrix's face began to turn purple as she tried to take in useless gulps of air. Then, she stopped. The Black Sister stopped moving, her face forever in shock. Draco panicked. _Lyra! What have you done! _He screamed. Lyra moved closer to the dead aunt and sifted through her garments, looking for pockets. She pulled out Narcissa Malfoy's wand and tucked it into Draco's pocket. Turning away, she left the body in the corridor and searched for the main course.


	6. Life and Death

**(Still Malfoy Manor)**

Halfway through the next corridor, Draco tried to resist Lyra's control. He wasn't sure about this anymore…he wasn't sure whose side he was even on. Lyra felt his resistance, as she was pushed backward. She stumbled and clenched her fists.

"Draco what are you doing?" her tone was frustrated. _M-my aunt…Bellatrix, you didn't have to kill __her! _He said. Lyra snorted.

"She attacked you Draco, which marks her an automatic target." Lyra said, regaining control and striding down the corridor. _Yeah, but- _

"Draco, do you want my assistance or not?" she snapped. Draco felt himself plummet. What had gotten into her? It frightened him. What if she took advantage of him and led him off somewhere? Lyra approached a door, and Malfoy could see she had no intention of opening it. Suddenly, it was blasted off its hinges and fell to the ground with a loud crack. It had scared Draco immensely, but also…Voldemort. He whipped around to see Malfoy, and not a smile appeared on his face, but a deep frown.

"Draco, what the hell did you do?" he asked, as if the house was his. Lyra lifted her head and glared at the man. The room seemed to grow immediately colder, and darker.

"You have something of Draco's, and his father's, and of Harry Potter's. I would like them back." she snarled with Draco's voice. Voldemort narrowed his eyes.

"Why are you speaking like that, Draco?"

"Draco's not here right now, you will answer to me." Lyra's audacity almost seemed to intimidate The Dark Lord, but not really.

"You are seriously pushing your luck boy. I will most certainly not give you any leniency next time."

"There will be no next time to worry about, human, for you will die. That is certain." finally Voldemort seemed to understand that there was something deeply wrong with this picture. It was not Draco Malfoy he was addressing, but something rather deadly, and unearthly. Suddenly, Voldemort's face lit up.

"Ah, so you're the Demon I've been sensing. Your presence was easily detected when you tried to kill Draco in the Hospital Wing of Hogwarts." Lyra narrowed her eyes. _So he had been paying attention. _She thought. Malfoy could hear her own voice in his head. _Lyra…._He tried one last time. _What do you want, sweetheart? _She asked. The endearment caught him off guard, and nearly forgot what he was going to say. _I'm sorry for panicking earlier. You scared me, and I know you only wanted to protect me- _He was cut off. _Draco, perhaps another time. _She said.

"You're awfully silent aren't you!" Voldemort snapped, redirecting her attention. Lyra glared at him with an intensity so fierce, he actually took a step back.

"_Avada Kedavra!" _Draco gasped mentally as the green light tunneled toward Lyra. The Demon merely raised a hand at it, and the spell vanished into the air. There was a moment of absolute shock. Voldemort appeared to be concerned now. If she could rid a spell in mid-air, what else could she do? Draco had already seen her kill his aunt without so much as moving. Then, he began blindly hurling spells at her with all his rage and ferocity. Lyra actually moved this time, she cart wheeled to the side and took cover behind a pillar. Quickly looking around the other side, she made a sinking hand motion, and the ceiling above Voldemort immediately began to collapse upon itself. The Dark Lord swiftly put up a shield like spell and managed to avoid being crushed. Lyra snarled. _So that's how it ends…_

**(Outside Malfoy Manor)**

Snape and the Malfoys whipped around at the sound of a loud crash within the manor. Narcissa stepped forward.

"Draco!" she whispered. Her eyes stared longingly at the manor. Lucius took her arm, but continued to stare. From atop the hill, Harry could see their immense hesitation. Snape seemed to allow them a moment. The girl, Anna, had left, but Revain remained, tucked away in the shadows. It would be easier if he stayed hidden, for now. Severus moved forward.

"Lucius…" he said, unsure of what else to say. Mr. Malfoy trembled in fear for his son, but then straightened up in pride. Narcissa was silently crying as her eyes almost seemed to bore into the walls of her home, trying to locate Draco. Harry knew that either of the Malfoys, or even both of them would've charged into the manor at any given moment.

It was a very odd situation. Harry standing with the Malfoys, and Snape, all of them he despised. Revain stepped forward and touched the boy's shoulder. Harry jumped and looked at him. Ciel continued to look at the house, but motioned with his fingers that he should follow. Following him into the woods a few yards, Revain looked into Harry's eyes.

"I feel I should tell you this in case things take a turn for the worse. But Lyra's has possessed Draco's body, and she intends to destroy Voldemort." Ciel paused, and ignored the confused expression Harry wore. "It's very difficult to explain, but you'll know it when it happens. The important thing is, since she has possessed him, there is a chance he could lose his life because of it. I think it would be fair to warn you. I will not tell his parents, for they would panic and rush into the house and possibly die themselves when the final step is complete." he explained. Harry couldn't form words, let alone a thought.

"I- …wh- Uh….." he stuttered. Revain sighed heavily.

"When he dies, however, he will instantly be handed over to us. And from there he would have two choices. To remain soulless for an eternity in the Demon World, or return to earth alive until he dies some other way, then he goes to Hell." Harry was very aware that his jaw had dropped to the ground in utter shock, disbelief, and terror for Draco.

"But- wha!? What?" he managed to shout the last word. Snape heard it and turned around.

"Why would Draco go to Hell? He hasn't done anything wrong!" Harry finally found his tongue. Revain shook his head.

"Draco accepted the help of a Demon, that is an automatic ticket straight to Hell. But I forget to mention, that if he chooses a life of the soulless, he can visit one person for only an hour, then is unable to cross sides for a hundred years." Harry felt his heart shatter. _What an awful predicament! Being alone for __eternity? When he came to earth after a hundred years his parents and all he cares for will be dead! _

"What is going here?" Snape suddenly appeared. He spotted Revain at once. "Well, well. Mr. Harry Potter has caught yet another murderer!" he glared at the man. Ciel Revain gave a stomach wrenching leer. "Azkaban would suit you well, as would a Dementor's Kiss!" Severus continued. Revain's lips frowned into a disgusted form.

"Oh please, I have no soul to be removed to begin with. It was wrenched from my body when I slaughtered an entire town of deadbeats." he spat. Snape raised his wand, making Ciel laugh.

"What would that do? Eh? Tickle me a little! The wizarding world can't do a thing."

"What the hell are you?" Harry could almost see fear glint behind Snape's eyes, or was it just irritation? A clap of what sounded like thunder, but from the ground distracted them all. Someone screamed. Harry looked through the trees and saw what appeared to a violent light show at Malfoy Manor. The Snape and Harry instantly raced back. What Revain had said still rattled in Harry's mind.

**(Inside Malfoy Manor)**

Lyra vaulted over a fallen pillar and hurled huge chunks of debris at Voldemort, using no more than her mind. The Dark Lord hissed in anger and quickly put up a shield charm.

"You can't pull that crap forever!" Lyra shouted, Draco noticed that his own voice was beginning to fade, and hers dominated. _What's going on? _He wondered. Once did everything go black, and for a moment he had no idea what had happened. Luckily it lasted for no more than three seconds. Draco would've felt sick, if he could've felt at all, from Lyra's bold flips and twists as she dodged Voldemort's furious spells to incapacitate her. Whoever she really was, she was an unsurpassed acrobat.

"Tell me then," The Dark Lord called out, distracting her for a moment. "If you cared so much for Draco why didn't you save him before!" Lyra's body tensed in animosity as she flung herself out from behind the pillar and with her two hands pushed out a column of violet fire from the center of each palm. Voldemort narrowly dodged the assault and scowled in irritation. Malfoy watched in awe as the plume of deep purple and scarlet smoke exhausted from her fingertips as she finished, shaking her hands to dissipate the rest.

"You will pay dearly for your ignorance." she said. Voldemort flicked another Imperious curse toward Draco, trying to expel Lyra from him and claim dominance over the boy once more. Almost lazily, The Demon swatted the spell from the air, and it sailed into the wall. Then, he pointed his wand to the ceiling. Debris began to rain down, but as Lyra went to push it away, Voldemort shouted.

"_Avada Kedavra!_" Draco gasped mentally as Lyra was hit in the chest, blasting back and rolling away. The debris fell to the floor and obscured the view of her. Malfoy's vision blacked out once more. Voldemort crept forward, craning his neck to peer over the fallen beams. He frowned when he saw Lyra rise to her feet. _Draco? Draco? Are you still with me? _Rage poured into every crevice of her mind, turning to The Dark Lord, her eyes glowed through Draco's. One blind eye, and one of the blood of her victims. Stretching out a skeletal hand outside of the boy's body. Her own form faded behind Malfoy's and the entire room was engulfed in a black flash.

**(Outside Malfoy Manor)**

Harry's heart skipped a beat as he heard a deafening eruption from within the manor. Darkness radiated all through the sky, the woods, and his mind. After a few moments, his vision returned. He heard Narcissa cough through the thick smog. Revain was unaffected as he stepped forward, gazing nervously into the gloom. After Mrs. Malfoy caught her breath, she cried,

"Draco?" her voice echoed through the silence. Now, Harry could see the destruction. The entire manor looked as if it had been bombed a hundred times over. Skeletal structural remains barely held up the fried roof, everything had smoke pouring from it. The floor was charred and broken marble tiles scattered everywhere. Immediately after Harry stopped staring at the damage, his eyes scanned for Draco…or Voldemort. He couldn't see much from the hilltop. Suddenly Narcissa got to her feet and started down, Lucius right on her heels. Snape slowly started after them, as did Harry. Approaching the manor…a slim figure was seen in the distance, making their way through the debris. Narcissa stared in hope. Harry could see the desperation in her eyes. Lucius was a little more stoic, but he could tell the man was just as desperate. The raven-haired boy jumped as Ciel Revain reappeared and placed a hand on Harry's shoulder. Only Snape stood a distance away. As the smoke cleared and the figure drew nearer, Harry could see that it was Draco Malfoy. But…something looked off. One of the boy's eyes was blind, and the other a violent shade of red.

"Is it…him?" Harry dared to breathe to Revain. The man stood still for a moment. Then he shook his head, very slowly.

"His body is intact, but I fear he is lost." he whispered. Harry felt a pang of guilt stab between his ribs. What would the surviving Malfoys think? He certainly didn't want to be present when they found out that their only son had been killed.

"Draco? Draco, honey!?" Narcissa's voice was only twisting the knife deeper into Harry. It wasn't him. Lyra had full possession. The blonde boy halted only ten feet from the Malfoys, and they all watched as Draco's eyes fell to the back of his head, and a darkness poured out of him. Harry cringed as he gazed at how terrifying Lyra was. Her long black hair looked as if she had electrocuted, the strands around her face eerily concealed the glowing crimson eye. The lower part of her face was merely blackened bone. Draco's body hit the ground, and Narcissa's scream of denial tore silence of the air. Lyra moved away from the boy's body as the Malfoys flew down upon him to mourn. Lucius crouched beside his wife, rubbing her back as he held back his tears. Lyra stood by Revain, and Harry had to force himself not lurch away in terror.

"The boy has perished in the attempt?" Revain asked. Lyra nodded.

"He was slipping away even before I conducted the final blow." her voice was far more gentle than her appearance. Snape continued to blend into the gloom behind him. Harry noticed that he was slipping further and further away. He turned his head back and watched as Narcissa clutched her son's body in her arms, crying into his neck.

"Draco has a decision to make then." Lyra stated. Revain and Harry looked at her.

"Where is he now?" the boy questioned.

"Awaiting in the grey space between life and death." she answered. Harry was actually quite surprised she even acknowledged him. Revain lowered his head.

"By the way," Lyra said, reaching into her pocket, "here's your magic stick, boy." she said, handing Harry's wand back to him.

"Erm, thanks…" Harry responded.

"Do they realize we need his body?" Revain inquired.

"No. But I will not ask them to part with it."

"No?"

"No, instead it will dissipate with us." Lyra took a breath through her nose. Harry quickly wrenched his head.

"Why does he need his body if he's going to be soulless?" Lyra narrowed her demonic eyes at Revain.

"So you have told him?" Ciel shrugged, much like a young child caught in the act. Lyra gazed at

Harry. "If he does not have it, then he cannot come to live in the Demon World. He'd be nothing more than a wandering spirit."

"But what about his soul?"

"His soul enables a life and death of him."

"In this…Demon World, would he have emotions or be a cold corpse walking around?"

"He remains the same, forever. Never ages, never suffers or dies. He will have emotions, any and every human emotion will remain. I have a feeling you are unable to grasp this concept?" Lyra was correct. Harry bit his lip, greatly confused with all this….this….soul business. Looking to the body of Draco, Lyra closed her eyes.

"We depart." and with that whisper, Revain and her burst into a black smoke, as did Draco's body, and disappeared, like fog clearing away in the sun. The disappearance of her son's body silenced Narcissa, and from there she didn't move a muscle. Harry felt a hand on his shoulder. Snape had returned from the shadows.

"Come. We've done enough damage." he said, quiet enough the Malfoys didn't hear. Harry shuddered and turned away with the man, never looking back.

**(The Grey Between Life and Death)**

Draco gasped and his eyes flew open. Was he dead? He couldn't tell. The last thing he recalled was Lyra vaulting wildly over the fallen pillars in his home, then he began to fade away. Perhaps he was dead. The boy then looked around, and instantly felt lost. Where was he? All around a dense grey fog. He couldn't see anything for more than a couple feet. The ground was grey as well, tiny grey grains of sand. Suddenly an eerie feeling came over him, like someone was behind him. Slowly, he peered over his shoulder. Lyra stood there, cloaked in the robes she wore when they first met. Her Asian hat was back, tilted forward to shroud her eyes. He could see the bandages were removed.

"L-Lyra?" he whispered, testing to see if his voice worked, "what happened?" although he partly knew the answer, he was terrified to confirm it. Lyra stood there silent, and did not answer. Malfoy trembled, and he understood. Tears began to run down his face.

"I'm dead aren't I?" he barely mouthed. Lyra nodded stiffly.

"I'm sorry." she whispered.

"How? How did I die? What went wrong?" Draco almost shrieked in his absolute terror. He was afraid, beyond afraid, his entire chest felt like it was being crushed.

"It just happened. Nothing went wrong. There was the chance you could die, and you did." She explained, Draco almost thought he heard remorse in her tone, or maybe he was imagining it.

"You have a decision awaiting you." she said. "You may either remain soulless for an eternity in the Demon World, and be allowed to visit only one person for an hour, then are unable to cross over for a hundred years, or return to earth alive but when you die, go to Hell." Draco stared, dumbfounded, and severely confused.

"I-um…what? Wait, why would I go to Hell? I haven't done anything wrong! It's Voldemort who should go to Hell!" he screamed, getting to his feet finally. His tears flowed like a flooding river, and kept coming. He honestly didn't think he even had this many tears.

"It is a contract with Demons. If you call upon them, or accept their assistance, it is an automatic sentence to Hell." she explained, Lyra hadn't actually moved from that spot now that Malfoy noticed. Taking in a shaky sob, he felt his knees go very weak, and fell to the ground. His hands covered his eyes as he tried to take in breaths, but they came as loud sobs. Lyra lifted her head.

"Do I have permission to approach you?" she whispered. Draco sucked in the loudest sob yet, but managed to choke,

"You do…" he pulled in his knees and rested his head on them. Lyra moved beside him and put her skinny arms around his back, resting her chin on his head, and stroking his back to calm him. After who knows long, the blonde was able to stop crying, for now, and tried to focus on breathing normally. Lyra pulled away.

"You have a minute now to make your final decision." Draco looked at her.

"Only a minute? But that's…" he couldn't even think. Lyra stood up and moved away, her back facing him. Malfoy shivered and began to quickly rake through his mind. _I don't want to go to Hell. Who __knows what kind of horrors await there. And if Voldemort died…wouldn't he be in Hell too? But what about __my parents? They're probably dying from the inside. I could visit them if I become the eternity…thing. I could tell them I was all right, and safe from Voldemort, confess to what really happened…but…Oh, Why? Why? Why? Why? I want to vomit, this is too awful- No, stay focused. _The boy looked up.

"Would I be with you in your home if I chose a life of eternity?" he asked. Lyra didn't move.

"From this point I can no longer influence your final decision in any way." she responded. _Damn! If I knew that for certain I wouldn't be so petrified. Is my life worth living if I go back? No matter what kind of good deeds I do…It will ultimately lead to Hell. I do not want to live in agony knowing that. But after a hundred years! My ENTIRE family will have passed on and died! What's the sense of returning in a hundred years only to have everyone I know and care for dead? _

"Ten seconds." Lyra said, startling him, then compelling him to rush, uncertain of the consequence should he fail to choose in the time limit. _So then…what is it going to be Draco? _He said to himself. _But who would I visit? For only an hour? Or maybe I should go back…._Lyra wheeled around without moving her feet.

"Time. Draco Lucius Malfoy. Have you reached your final decision?" rising to his feet, the blonde looked at her, right through her eyes.

"I have." he said.


	7. Betrayal and Forgiveness

**(Hogwarts, Gryffindor Common Room)**

Harry stumbled to the Gryffindor Common Room. Snape had left him immediately after they went through the doors of Hogwarts. The portrait lady awoke with a snooze, and glared at the boy.

"What are you doing out this hour, boy? Password?" she asked haughtily. Harry slowly glared up at her, the look of death in his eyes. The lady startled and laughed nervously.

"Oh, uh, never mind, just go on in." the painting swung forward, and Harry almost tripped stepping in, his feet had been dragging since he left. His eyes stung from the lack of blinking. He barely noticed Hermione, Ron and Ginny sitting on the couch. Hermione leapt up, after Ginny, but both stopped short, seeing him so grim.

"H-Harry?" Hermione tried, her voice very quiet and uncertain. "What happened? Dumbledoreexplained what has been happening, but not all of it." Harry continued to the stairs.

"Harry?" Hermione dared once more. Harry stopped, then looked back. His eyes bloodshot.

"Draco's dead. For real this time." he started slowly up the stairs. "He's not coming back." The three stood by the fireplace. Ron stepped forward.

"Shouldn't we go talk to him?" he suggested. Hermione shook her head.

"No, we wait until he's ready, or else he could snap." she said. Ginny sat back down.

"How long would that be?" she asked. Hermione stared at the ground.

"Who knows…"

**((((((((((()))))))))))))**

Harry sat on the edge of his bed. He trembled in rage. The boy could not believe that Voldemort had drove Draco to death with his abhorrent obsession. It made Harry want to vomit all the more. When Draco first broke into tears in front of him, he thought it was a joke. But no, it was all too real. The Gryffindor pounded the wall with his fist, immune to the pain. He could've saved Draco from death, but he failed, miserably. Something hot trailed from his eyes, and he realized they were tears of anger, and great distress.

"I'm sorry…" he whispered in a choked sob, "Draco I am so, so sorry…" he buried his face in his hands and clenched his jaw. Gasping for breath, he managed to say, "God damn…"

As Harry sat there in silent tears, he felt the room grow steadily colder, and colder, until he could see his breath dancing upon the air.

"Potter? Can you hear me?" a voice eerily familiar to Draco's sounded. Harry jumped out of his skin, off the bed, whipped around and stared dumbfounded at the blonde Slytherin.

"I'll take that as a yes." he said, slightly amused by the violent outburst.

"D-Draco!? How- But…Y-y- you're dead?!" he cried hysterically.

"I guess I am." Draco frowned, looking down. Harry shivered just looking at the boy.

"What was your decision then?" he asked frantically, "are you eternal or are you alive?" he couldn't even phrase the choices correctly. Draco's eyebrows slanted.

"How did you know about my choices?" he twitched.

"Revain, now, what did you do?" Harry stepped forward. Malfoy flushed.

"I chose to be soulless for an eternity, granted I get to visit just one person." his eyes looked into Harry's, tears blurred his beautiful rain cloud eyes. "And I chose you…" his voice stuttered.

"B-but why?"

"I didn't want to leave without telling you how much I appreciated your attempt to save from Voldemort. Even if it did fail, I don't care. The fact that you risked your life to help me, despite everything I've done to you…" Draco took in a deep sharp breath, "it means something to me, Harry." _Harry? Did he __just actually say my name? _The boy couldn't believe it.

"I can't believe it." Harry finally said. Draco stepped forward, less than a foot from Harry.

"Neither can I." he looked away for a moment. "What do you think it's like? Living forever, never to die never to suffer? I'd assume it would be boring after a while, just never ever ending. But then would death be like? Frozen forever never to live again?" Draco wiped away the tears from his eyes. Suddenly he lurched forward and wrapped his arms around Harry, taking the other by immense surprise.

"I'm scared…" he gasped, "I don't want to be frozen forever!" he buried his face in Harry's shoulder. Slowly, and hesitantly, the Gryffindor slid his arms around Draco.

"But I think it would be better to live like that then to live your life knowing in the end no matter what you do, you will go to Hell regardless. It would be agonizing to know that all your life." he said. Draco sobbed and pulled away.

"Perhaps you're right." he back up and fell onto the bed, sitting up.

"At least Voldemort can't get me where I'm going." he blinked away the remaining tears. Harry moved over and sat down beside the blonde.

"Yeah, at least you'll be safe. But where are you going there? Are you going to be alone?" Draco shivered against Harry's arm.

"I hope not. I'm hoping that I can be with Lyra. That wouldn't be so bad." he smiled. Harry nodded.

"I think you if you were alone for an eternity you'd go completely insane."

The two sat in silence for a few moments. Then Draco sat up.

"What time is it? How long have I been here?" he asked. Harry sat up as well.

"I think…forty-five minutes…" he looked around for the small watch Ron usually kept around. Draco sighed and fell back against the bed, closing his eyes. It had been far too long since he had properly slept. Although, the last time he had 'slept' he was in his room and had to desperately escape. Too soon, Voldemort showed up and forced himself on Draco. The blonde suddenly frowned, and shivered. He could almost feel the weight of The Dark Lord against him. _Feel free to scream! _His voice echoed in his head. Draco bolt upright and screamed, scaring the wit out of Harry for the second time.

"What's wrong?" he bellowed, concerned, and slightly angry for being startled again. Draco blushed and rubbed his arms.

"Will I truly ever be free from him?" he whispered. Harry came over and sat down, hesitantly putting his hand on the boy's shoulder.

"What do you mean? What happened?" he asked. Draco shook his head.

"Maybe I'm just overreacting right now. Maybe all I need to finally leave this place." instantly he regretted saying those words. "No matter how much I dread it." he whispered. Harry glanced at the pocket watch. It was almost midnight. Only another minute.

"Draco, you have one last minute." he said, watching the blonde's eyes. Draco's head snapped up and looked at him. He licked his lips nervously and sighed.

"Then I say good-bye to you…forever…In a hundred years I suppose you'll be dead." Harry nodded.

"Yeah…I'm sorry the last hour we had was so full of this." he mumbled.

"What did you say?"

"I'm sorry about our grudge. It really had no point, you know?" Harry tried. Draco nodded. Malfoy quickly looked to Harry.

"Harry before I go I need you to do something!" he covered the boy's mouth when he went to say 'what'. "Tell my parents what really happened! Tell my father Voldemort did rape me. But also tell them I'm all right, and I'm going to be safe from him, forever! Please, please do just that! Please!" Draco begged. And for moment, Harry truly believed Draco was a good person. He nodded, and a tear slid down his cheek. A moment went by without a word, then, the blonde's figure began to turn to ash, and in a violent gust of wind from nowhere, he was gone.

**(((((((((((((())))))))))))))**

Hermione anxiously glanced at the staircase leading to the boy's dormitory for the umpteenth time. Ron sat in front of the fire, head in his hands. Ginny was doing the same thing as Hermione.

"Oh, where is he? I just want to know if he's all right!" Granger said, her stomach was in knots from worry. She couldn't believe Draco Malfoy was gone forever. Even though they hated the boy, she couldn't help the gnawing feeling inside her conscious. Ginny shot up.

"He better not kill himself!" she snapped. Ron lifted head.

"Don't say things like that. He probably just feels guilty about the whole Malfoy thing." Ron said. Hermione nodded.

"Yes, he probably feels like Draco's death is all his fault." she trailed off. She didn't want to pretend to know, she _wanted _to know.

After a few more moments of torturous silence, the three of them whipped their heads around to the sound of footsteps. Ginny got up first. Harry came into view, a very small smile on his face. Hermione looked dumbfounded. How could he happy now?

"Harry, please tell us what happened." she begged. Harry sat down on the couch with all three of them. He took a deep breath.

"Did Dumbledore tell you anything about possession?" the three looked even more confused.

"No," Hermione answered, "please just tell us what is going on!" Harry looked to fire, and began.

**((((((((((((()))))))))))))))**

"So Draco had to choose between those two decisions or be trapped in 'The Grey' forever?" Ginny asked. Harry nodded.

"Pretty much. But I still cannot believe he chose to see me as his last visit."

"Well, at least for a hundred years." Ron added.

"How awful. Why would Draco go to Hell!? He hasn't done anything _that _terrible!" Hermione asked the same question Harry and Draco had asked previously.

"Revain told me making a contract with a Demon is a Death Sentence." Harry responded. Ginny leaned closer.

"But, You-Know-Who is gone right? The Demon killed him."

"I have no idea. Maybe she did it, maybe she didn't. I think her main intention was to deliver a warning, then take Draco should it get worse."

"Which it did." Ron mumbled. The idea of Voldemort violating Draco had made the three of them sick to their stomachs. Ron had actually excused himself to the bathroom to vomit.

"He gets to come back after a hundred years?" Ginny said aloud. Harry nodded.

"That's absolutely bloody ridiculous! In a hundred years everyone he knows and cares for will be dead, everything will have changed, and he wouldn't be able to live here because he doesn't age!" the other Gryffindors looked at Ginny in surprise. Her anger at Draco's situation informed Harry that maybe even if they had hated Draco, everything had changed now.

"I know, I know…" Harry said. Though he didn't. He did not fully understand the Demon Contract or life or anything. He didn't wanted to.

"I can't believe he went to see you, instead of his parents." Ron said aloud, but mainly to himself.

"Well why wouldn't he. Harry did everything he could to help him. And this just goes to show that maybe Draco does have a sense of compassion after all." Hermione defended.

"It's going to be hard. Here at Hogwarts without Draco. And Pansy." Harry said somberly. "I think if you're truly human, the death of an enemy changes how you think about them." The three others digested that for a moment. And they all nodded in agreement.

"So then," Ron said, a smile on his face, "if Draco comes back in a hundred years, wouldn't he see your great grandchildren? Like, you haves kids, then those kids have kids, who have kids. Wouldn't that be disturbing? Draco stays sixteen forever and he can see all the descendents of our family?" the others gave small smiles, just to lighten the dark mood.

"I guess so." Hermione said, then she began to think about it seriously. Ginny tsked.

"That's creepy." she said.

"I think that would work out to be great great children, but I'm not sure…It's hard to think about how far that could go." Hermione admitted. Harry shuddered. The thought of Draco being around forever, to come and go into the real world until the end of it. Thoughts of that disturbed him utterly, and made him want to cry.

"I guess this means we won't be hearing much of the Malfoys anymore." Ron said. Ginny shook her head.

"They could blame Draco's death on Harry, and make him look responsible." she argued. Ron rolled his eyes.

"Probably. After they overcome the shock and go into denial." he responded. The portrait door opened, and they all looked to see who it was. Professor Mcgonagall strode forward, in night clothes, looking to Harry. The boy automatically frowned.

"Mr. Potter, Dumbledore wishes to see you." she said. Harry got up, immediately followed by Ginny.

"Not you, Miss Weasley. The Headmaster wanted to discuss something private." she said, her voice was very sullen, and her eyes looked sad. Harry hesitantly followed her out of the portrait, glancing to his friends. Mcgonagall walked swiftly down the hall, so swiftly, Harry almost had to run to catch up with the

elder woman. The stone gargoyles parted immediately and she, gently pushed him forward onto the platform.

"You're not coming?" Harry asked. The Professor shook her head and gave a small nod. Quickly, the platform ascended and took Harry to the stairs in merely a few seconds. _Why is everyone in a rush? _He wondered. The boy felt himself panic. _Maybe something happened…What if the Malfoys committed suicide in their grief?_ Harry quickly ran through the door, and spotted Dumbledore, eager to get started with this business. Suddenly, the door closed behind him. Harry wheeled around to face-

"Snape!? What are you doing here?"

"Be quiet Potter, there are matters far more significant than my presence here." he retorted.

"Take a seat Harry, I have much, much to explain." the Headmaster began, even he sounded sullen and depressed. Hesitantly, Harry sat down. Snape stood behind the chair, making the boy uncomfortable, and wary.

"As you know, tonight Draco has passed on, forever." he began, "I understand that he had a decision to make. To remain alive or pass on as a soulless being." Harry lurched forward.

"How'd you now?" he demanded. Dumbledore motioned to Snape behind him. Harry scowled and leaned back.

"I actually have a confession, Harry. Severus and I do." Dumbledore gazed into Harry's eyes to see if he could handle the truth. "From the beginning, Severus has told me of Voldemort's strange obsession with Draco, and his hold on Lucius. Together we devised a plan to try and relinquish his hold on the Malfoys. We had to begin with Draco. The boy had been charged with Lucius's punishment. He had been ordered to kill me. Severus had to gain Voldemort's trust, so he gave into a deal. He wanted Draco as a motivational tool for the Malfoys. If they disobeyed or slipped up, he swore to kill Draco. In the attempt of our plan, a strange darkness swept through the castle. I knew what had come afoot. In Draco's vulnerability, he attracted the attention of a Demon."

"Lyra." Harry said.

"Indeed. We had been deceived. Voldemort was not interested in the Malfoys at all. His real interest was only Draco. When Severus slipped Draco the Sleeping Draught and delivered him to Voldemort, he noticed he said nothing about Lucius. He took the boy and raped him. Mind and body. We realized our mistake far too late. This had nothing to do with Lucius And we were not given the chance to redeem ourselves, for Revain came to me and told us not to get involved in any way. I did not think it seriously, until he killed the girl Pansy Parkinson, and Lyra came to me, and swore that Hogwarts and everyone in it would fall into the abyss of Hell should I interfere with her plans. Severus and I stood back for a while, and watched as everything drew out. Later, I found out that Draco's 'deaths' were failed possessions by Lyra, as she tried to take him away. As we stood on the sidelines, we realized what an awful mistake we had made. Harry, I know Draco visited you tonight. It was his last visit wasn't it?" Harry heard enough, launching out of the chair, he screamed with all the force in his lungs,

"HOW COULD YOU DO THIS TO HIM!?" Dumbledore, Fawkes and Severus jumped a little in fright. The Headmaster stared, dumbstruck as he tried to form words.

"Draco trusted you! I think he was damn perfectly right to reject your help! All you did was corral him back into the danger he so desperately tried to escape." Harry broke into tears, not caring if Snape saw. He was in complete utter disbelief.

"Harry, please I-"

"NO! NO! I don't want to hear or know anymore. I'm actually glad Draco's gone! Cause I know he's in a place where Voldemort can't torture him!"

"Harry, there is more you need to know." Dumbledore bellowed. Harry reluctantly sat down and waited.

"Despite Lyra's immense destruction, Voldemort is not dead. He was separated from his body, and will remain immobilized for a short period of time. To kill him permanently you must destroy the last few Horcruxes. I know Lyra has destroyed Nagini."

"Wait, he's still alive? Even after _that_?" Harry asked incredulously.

"Yes, unfortunately. Lyra did not know about the Horcruxes." Dumbledore said.

The silence in the office lasted for quite some time. Then Dumbledore spoke.

"Harry, I do believe Draco asked you but one wish." Harry looked up.

"Tell his parents the truth." he said. Harry nodded.

"Where are they though? I think they left the rubble pile of their manor."

"Yes, they have. They are living with Lucius's father. Severus can take you there." Dumbledore said as Harry stood.

"No, I'll go there myself. I think there's enough damage done to them already." Harry growled as he left the office. Dumbledore sat in silence as Snape looked to him.

"He will learn to forgive in time. This experience as been a living hell for all of us."

"I know…" was all Severus could say.

**(Abraxas Malfoy's Manor)**

Harry shuffled down the pathway to Abraxas Malfoy's manor. The sky and land around him matched his mood perfectly. The dark cloud of despair hung over him like the thick ebony clouds. A rumble of thunder vibrated through his ribcage. As he moved closer to the immense Victorian manor, he began to panic. _What if they don't believe me? What if they don't even let me in? It will be the second time I have failed Draco. _The guilt in his stomach swelled even more.

"Hope for the best." he whispered to himself.

Harry reached up and banged the large door hangar, and waited. The crows sitting on the dead trees chattered and cawed loudly. They boy felt as if he were in a graveyard. The door opened, startling him from his thoughts. The man at the door squinted at him. He was elderly, but very proud and stood tall.

"Abraxas Malfoy?" Harry tried. The man glared now.

"What is your purpose here, boy?" the older man sneered.

"Is Lucius Malfoy here? I have to tell him something very important. I think he would like to know what I have to say." Harry said, trying to be polite. A door slamming in his face would be the worst at the moment. Abraxas gave a very heavy irritated sigh.

"Make this swift, boy. My son is in no mood for conversation." he held the door open for Harry. The main foyer was even more regal and furnished than the one that had once stood at the Malfoys.

"He is in the Drawing Room. If you upset him, you will regret it." Abraxas said. He disappeared into another room even more impressive than the foyer. Harry moved into the Drawing Room, slowly, as his eyes couldn't help but look at everything in the room.

He stopped when he saw Lucius Malfoy. The man sitting in an armchair, angled just so that he could not see Harry in his peripheral vision. The man was facing a blank corner. Slowly moving closer, Harry stopped when he was just a few feet away.

"Mr. Malfoy?" he called out. Lucius didn't jump as he expected. Instead, the man's head swiveled like a broken chair. He looked like he hadn't slept in months, his hair was limp and his chin covered in prickly stubble.

"What the bloody hell do you want, Potter?" even his voice sounded strained. Keeping his composure, Harry sat down in a chair facing him.

"I have come here on behalf of Draco's final wish." Instantly, a light in Lucius's eyes sparkled.

"My son?" his lip trembled. "What do you mean? He's dead, how could he…" the man trailed off.

"It's too much to explain, but he asked me to confess what he did not tell you." there was a silence as Lucius stared at the ground, wide-eyed.

"What, what did he want to confess?"

"He wanted me to tell you, that Voldemort did, actually, r-…" Harry paused. Lucius quickly held up a hand.

"Please don't say the word! I think I already know what you are going to say." he interrupted.

"I figured as much. When he came out of the closet, he looked like he'd gone through Hell and back. He confessed to me that The Dark Lord had groped him, but he seemed to be holding back. Later when The Dark Lord arrived at the manor he devised a quick plan to get us out of the house." Lucius stopped and shook his head.

"I should've stayed. I should've told Narcissa earlier." he said. Harry could not believe this. First Draco had opened up to him, now Lucius? Had the whole world turned upside down on him? Or had he just been so caught up in his grudges he forgot that these people had feelings. Real feelings.

"I'm sorry." Harry whispered. A short silence dashed between them before Harry decided to continue.

"Draco also wanted me to tell you that he's safe now, where he is. Voldemort can't ever hope to reach him." Lucius nodded slowly, he was coming out of his momentary shock and began to remember who it was he was talking to.

"I see." he said. "You'll never hear this again, but thank you." Lucius seemed tense saying those two words. "Well then, you know your way out…" he said. Harry took the hint, and immediately left. Mr. Malfoy really just wanted him to leave. Harry believed he had done enough. After all, why would they not try to blame him? He was there with Draco for a great deal of time.

Exiting the manor, he took care not to slam the door, or even have it creak as he shut it. Strolling down the dark dirt road, he sighed to himself. _Well, that's done and over with. Maybe now I can breathe. _He admitted, he was terrified of Lucius's reaction upon first seeing him. He had a surmise of the man trying to kill him, or scream at him, or something violent. But no. Harry shivered, despite the air being moderate. Everything that had happened seemed so otherworldly. Almost as if it never happened, and he would wake up from the deranged dream, and Draco would be alive, the Malfoys would still be as rude and proud as ever. His heart stung for a moment. The sadness felt like endless waves trying to wash him out as far as they could. But Harry held fast. He certainly couldn't wait to get back to the Gryffindor Common Room and tell everyone. Suddenly, he stopped dead. Dumbledore and Severus had deceived Draco, and he would never know the truth. Harry put his hand inside his pocket. There was a piece of rolled parchment, and he could use his wand as a quill.

"I'm going to write the truth to Draco. And I'll put in the place he will most likely visit when he returns." Harry said to himself.

Harry Potter had apparated, illegally, but who really cared, to the remains of Malfoy Manor. The skeletal structure leaned over like an old man peering into a pool of water.

Moving through the rubble and fallen pillars, Harry noticed most of the rooms were still intact, meaning all four walls were standing. His eyes loomed carefully over the destruction. How little did Muggles _and _Wizards knew about Demons then. Suddenly, something in the rubble caught his eye. Harry moved closer to the ash pile. Draco's wand. It lay half buried. Falling to his knees, he took it by the base and pulled it from the ash. The entire thing was completely undamaged. _Why does this not surprise me? _He thought morbidly. Rising to his feet, he searched for Malfoy's room.

He didn't know where Draco's room had been, but managed his way to the room. As he opened the door, he found that Draco's room suffered the least damage. _Not surprising, again, it's probably the only thing Lyra spared. _Harry stepped across the clean tile to a small desk, and began to write. Still clutching Draco's wand.


	8. The Other Side

**(Hogsmeade)**

Hogsmeade was silent. He knew it would be. It was at least three in the morning. The snow had melted, informing all of an incoming spring. Harry saw Hogwarts in the distance, and smiled.

The portrait lady glared at Harry incredulously.

"By God boy! It's nearly three in the morning, what on _earth _are you doing now?" her melodrama almost caused Harry to laugh.

"Spindleweed." he actually knew a password this time.

"Oh, all right!" the lady exclaimed, swinging back. Harry leapt through and looked at the common room. It was empty. His heart plummeted into the depths of his body. He was really hoping his friends would wait for him. But they couldn't wait forever. Like Draco. He'd just have to tell them in the morning.

In the boy's dorm, Harry did indeed catch sight of Ron. Mouth open, snoring loudly with a drop of drool on his lip.

"Good god!" Harry laughed quietly. Sitting on his bed, and stared out the window at the landscape. In the distance, he could see an oddly colored star. It was violet in color, and as he leaned closer, it faded. Shaking his head, he pulled the covers over him, and tried to sleep.

**(The World of the Eternal)**

Draco jerked awake, and gasped, hauling himself into a sitting position.

"Where am I?" he said aloud. Taking a moment to look around as he stood, he realized with hope, that he recognized the room. It was the same castle Lyra had taken him to when he was crying in the bathroom for the third or so time. He remembered the window, the walls, the couch, everything. He smiled and looked around.

"Lyra?!" he called out. Silence. A frown wiped clean the smile from his face. Then, a door opened behind him. Whirling around, he almost choked in a laugh. Lyra strode forward, her face of the most flawless alabaster skin, no odd skeleton exposure, or demon eyes. Just her gorgeous face, and violet colored eyes shaded by thick ebony lashes. Her hair was piled elaborately on top of her head in some Chinese style. The dress she wore was a deep purple qipao. Lyra's eyes looked into his as she smiled brightly. How young and different she looked, nonetheless he could recognize her anywhere.

"Draco…" she breathed.

"Am I living with you?" he jumped to conclusion. She nodded eagerly.

"For an eternity."

"That's a long time." Draco joked. Lyra gave a another smile and came over to embrace him tightly.

"I hope you like your new robes, Anna picked them out. She's quite eccentric." Draco pulled back and examined himself.

"Oh, wow, I didn't even notice these." he pulled at them. Around him was a thin silken black robe, and on the back was a crimson Chinese dragon. Underneath were some odd pants that were tighter toward the bottom, and some sort of Japanese gi.

"They're nice." Draco said. Lyra sat down on the couch behind her.

"Good. If you don't like them you change out as many times as you please."

"Okay." he said. "But, wait, where is my suit, the one my p-…parents gave me?" he asked, stuttering at the mention of his parents, who he'd never see again.

"It's being washed," Lyra said through a mouthful of apple. She cleared her mouth to speak, "I don't want any sign of the Snake Man here, that includes the suit that he touched." she turned her head to look at him.

"I'm going to make you shower later, if you don't mind. It may not completely clear away the memories, but it will get some of his scent off you." she continued. Draco's eyebrows slanted at the 'shower' word.

"Shower?"

"It's what humans do, they have a giant fountain that sprays hot water on them. It's strange, but very useful." Draco nodded and sat down, the window opened up to a vast ocean, but toward the left a little was another island. A tall dark lighthouse sat idle on the coast. On the horizon, the first indication of dawn appeared. Malfoy sighed, feeling homesick already.

A few silent minutes proceeded without interruption. The door opened behind them. Draco wheeled around to see who it was, while Lyra remained still. Revain strode forward and up to a strange box. Vaguely, Malfoy could recognize it was a Muggle television. Though it was old. Ciel lifted a slip of paper from the top and turned around. He paused when he spotted Draco. His expression was vacant, but remorseful.

"Must have been a heart-splitting decision." he said. "You have my sympathy."

"Revain…you were a professor at Hogwarts…why are you here?" Draco was confused.

"I was a false professor." he answered, glancing to Lyra, "she ordered me to keep a close eye on you. See if your depression would worsen. It did. We were all looking out for you." he sat down beside Malfoy, who scooted away in uncertainty.

"Are you…still a vampire or…what?"

"No. I never was. Never have and never _ever _want to be." Ciel lifted his head in a haughty manner as he gazed down on Draco. The blonde blushed and looked to floor.

"So then…what do you do around here? I mean…how big is the Demon World?" his curiosity started back up.

"The Demon World is larger than yours, but almost identical. It looks what most of you would call, muggle world." she pronounced 'muggle' as if it were completely foreign to her. It probably was. Draco nodded, trying to understand.

"So, it has shops, houses, roads and farm things like that?" just because he didn't like muggles didn't mean he couldn't recognize things they used.

"Precisely." Lyra held the apple core in her fingers, and it disintegrated within seconds, leaving Malfoy quite astonished. A few more silent minutes put a distance between conversation. The sunrise began to creep up above the horizon. Lyra lifted her head and gazed out the circular window.

"Where's Anna? She's going to miss it unless she hurries along."

"Indeed." Revain said.

"Perhaps she's already outside on the coast. Let's go see." Lyra got to her feet and swiftly departed the room, Revain right behind her. Draco jumped up from the upholstered couch and went to follow them. He was amazed to see that they were already moving down a spiral staircase on the other end. _Damn they're fast! _He thought. Moving down the twisted staircase, he watched them disappear into separate rooms. From there, he grew utterly confused. Just then, Lyra poked her head out.

"Give us but a moment to change into something more appropriate Draco." she said, "Oh, and by the way, the door to your left holds your own attire. You should change into it." Malfoy glanced at the door. The glass had a frosted pattern. Stepped forward, he pushed the door to the side. There hung his suit from the Old World. It hung as if it were waiting for him, in the middle of the laundry room. Draco had never seen a muggle laundry room before, and he glanced with a confused expression at the two large white boxes sitting on the opposite end. Shutting the door, he grabbed his suit and began to strip down. After he pulled off his shirt, he waited. Nothing. There was no feeling of Voldemort's eyes on him. And perhaps the feeling would never return. Malfoy flushed, feeling foolish, and quickly dressed.

When he opened the door, he jumped to see Lyra and Revain standing there. Lyra in a strange form-fitting navy blue jumpsuit made of leather. Revain was in a black muggle janitor uniform. Draco's expression made them both laugh. Even stranger, they turned away and continued to stroll down the hall. Leaving the blonde insanely confused. _Why? What? _He couldn't even think of a question.

Lyra pushed a small green button next to a tall and intimidating door. Stepping back, they waited.

"What's this?" Draco asked.

"Anna's room." she responded. The door swung open forward, and Anna, pale and tiny as ever stared up at Draco with her impossibly crystal like eyes.

"Are we going now?" she yawned. Malfoy glanced at her heavenly white sundress and straw hat. She looked angelic.

"Yes, come on." Lyra whispered.

Outside the fortress, the land was a bright morning orange. Everything bathed in a cheery glow, and yet Draco couldn't help but feel oppressed by the ominous feeling of endlessness. Revain spooked him as the man lay a hand upon his shoulder.

"You still like Astronomy?" he inquired. Malfoy glanced up at him, scrutinizing his expression.

"Yes." he answered.

"Good. You'll have fun tonight." he said, moving away. Malfoy wondered if the confusion here would ever end. Probably not._Even after a hundred years_. He joked grimly.

The group walked along the rocky coast until the sun was almost directly above them. The world seemed normal now. Almost as if he had never left.

"So then. What do you want to do today?" Lyra asked, "and for the next hundred years." she joked. Draco would've laughed, if it didn't make his stomach swirl uncomfortably.

"We go to the beach!" Anna piped up, "then to the city, then the country, then the old shipyard!" why did her voice remind him so much of Granger's? Draco caught up to walk with Lyra.

"City? There are people here?" he questioned, his heart lifting in hope.

"And your idea of people is?" gave a wild laugh. "To answer your question, yes, there are other live forms."

"So, do you use money at all? Or some sort of currency or laws?" Malfoy wanted to know as much as possible, in case he ran into trouble.

"Erm, not really. But the laws are quite simple. We do not murder for most of us cannot die, but there are violent outbursts and fights. We do not put one another into jail for it would be a mere game. Demons do not understand the concept of rape, therefore it is unheard of. We do not steal or litter for I know no Demon that can stand a mess. It takes far too long to explain, but trust me. You will learn in time." she said. Draco noticed the sharp charcoal rocks turn into luminescent sand. He gazed out into the horizon. The world seemed far too similar to his. But in a way, he was very comforted by it.

"If you don't understand rape…" Malfoy began, "then how and why did you come for me when Voldemort did it to me?" Lyra's smile whipped off her face.

"_I_ understand. I spend more time in your world then this. And I've learned a few things. Your suffering was infuriating. I would not allow that for you." she stopped and stared down at a shell. It was pearly pink, and twisted. Very much like a unicorn's horn. The girl bent down and picked it up. When she did, the horn began to glow very faintly. She held it out to Draco.

"It's a Unicorn's horn. To find one like this is worth more than ten thousand blessings. Keep it. It bears nothing but luck." she explained in a soft whisper. Malfoy trembled as he held it. So light, and airy, it was. Tears prickled the back his eyes.

"I think it's far too late for this now…" he whispered. Lyra said nothing as the blonde looked it over. It was a little shorter than his wand. And then he wondered.

"Where did my wand go, when you destroyed Malfoy Manor?"

"They lay amongst the rubble." she answered, beginning to walk again. The silence stretched for a few minutes before Malfoy watched the wind try to carry away Anna's hat. She held it firmly down and looked up. Her blonde tresses blowing eerily. Everything seemed to be eerie to Draco now. Just then he stopped and stared down at the Unicorn horn. It wasn't eerie. It was like a small beacon of hope. The blonde couldn't suppress a smile as he gazed at it.

"It's nice here isn't it?" a young girl's voice startled him. He grew more confused to see how close she was to him. After all, she had been at least fifty feet from him.

"Y-yes, I suppose. But, it's all really confusing and…depressing." the thoughts of eternity would haunt him without falter probably forever.

"You get used to it. Trust me." she whispered. Draco turned to look at her. Her face was dead seriously and very precocious. The little white hand was stretched out, inviting him. Hesitantly, he took it as she began to walk him to the water.

The afternoon sped toward them, as did the thick grey fog. Lyra and Anna had led Draco to a town on the coastline. They walked over the large bridge to the over side. Revain had departed long ago. Sitting in the water to their left were two massive towers that once supported and old bridge right beside the existing one. No muggle cars sped by on the bridge. In fact, the entire way to the town, Draco didn't see any signs of life. Not even a stray animal racing about or bird in the sky. _It's like the apocalypse in a different world. Mirroring our own. _He crinkled his nose at his own thoughts. The more time he spent here the more in depth his thoughts became. _Or maybe because it's the horrid incident in my life. I hope Voldemort suffers, and rots in Hell. He deserves it! _Draco snorted.

Across the bridge, Lyra made a turn to an old abandoned shipyard. It looked as if time had stood still. Everything was still ready to crafted and put into the water. Except, there was no one to do the task. The blonde shivered, feeling the moist, clamminess of the fog. Lyra stopped, as did Anna. The little girl was holding Draco's Unicorn Horn. Malfoy stopped with them, and tried to detect any sort of emotion in their faces. He would have better luck performing a Patronus Charm without a wand. Their expressions gave away nothing.

"Do you not wish to look around?" Lyra asked him. He stared at her.

"Alone?" he tried to sound like it didn't matter. But he was so fragile right now. Lyra nodded.

"We won't abandon you." she whispered. The blonde shivered, not from the fog this time, and very reluctantly turned away. "We'll wait here." she called after him.

A large open arch allowed him entrance to the station. The lights were no longer in working condition. And when Draco flicked the switch, a crackling noise was heard in the wires. He kept them off. Moving farther through the shipyard, he could not help but stare in awe at the muggle work. An enormous ship bared down upon him. It was half finished, the skeletal structure on the half facing Draco. His eyes drifted to small window overlooking the facility. A very disturbing feeling washed over him.

Opening the door to the office, he was met with voices. Men's voices. Or one. Then he realized with plunging hope that it was merely a radio, left on, as if the owner would return to it.

"We're suffering major power outages all throughout the western side of Europe. Worker officials have not yet confirmed the source. Power may not be restored until the 5 of May, eleven years from now." the voice said. Draco glared at it. _Eleven years from now? Power? What year am I frozen in? _Suddenly the feeling of a hand groping Draco compelled him to whip around in fright….he could've cried. Nothing. Just empty space, and a broken spirit. Flying out of the office, he hurried back to Lyra and Anna.

The Demons were indeed there when he returned. In the same exact position and location.

"I like it here a lot." Anna said, gazing at Draco, a little pink spread through her cheeks.

"In the human world I often observe their work." she smiled at him, blushing harder. Lyra turned away and went to the bridge tower.

"Come on. The fog is lifting. We'd be able to see the sunset from there."

Draco clutched the iron beam like there was no tomorrow. Creeping forward, he peered over the side of the railing. A dizzying height froze him as he stared down at the water. If he fell, what would happen?

"Draco, look over here." Lyra called, jerking him from his self induced hallucinations. He whipped his head up to stare at the bright orange orb sinking below the deep violet horizon. All around it were warm colors melting into one another. Anna's dress reflected them perfectly. The white dress was now an iridescent shard of glass reflecting oranges, hazy yellows, burnt auburns and shades of violet.

"Wow…" he breathed, forgetting his fear of falling to the depths below.

"Get a good look." Lyra said over the wind, "the weather changes more often than I do hairstyles." she said. Draco came down to sit between the two Demons. Anna's hand slipped into his as she held it on her lap.

"See, it won't be so bad here after all!" she said cheerfully.

"Yeah…" Draco mumbled, "let me count how many days I spend crying first." he felt tears now.

"I know it's hard to accept. But which would you rather be in?" Lyra did not look at him. Draco didn't answer. He didn't need to. Just then, Lyra turned her head and kissed his cheek, making the blonde turn scarlet. Before he could recover, Anna jumped up and kissed him as well, turning his face tomato red. She giggled as he bit down a smile and turned his head. Lyra did nothing.

Eventually, the sun dipped down further and further. And Draco had laid his head on Lyra's shoulder, and Anna's on Draco's.

"Perhaps you're right." he said, "This isn't bad, at all."


	9. 80 Years Later

_80 Years Later_

Draco raced down the road, only turning impatiently to see where Lyra was.

"Hurry up! Please!" he called. Lyra gave a snide smile, and in a blink of an eye, she was thirty feet ahead of the blonde.

"How many times have I told you not to do that!" he screamed. Lyra chuckled in amusement and waited for the lovely blonde to catch up. It didn't take him too long.

"I still can't believe you found a loophole in the contract, and I'm able return twenty years early." he beamed. Lyra nodded and stopped walking. Draco looked around anxiously.

"So is there a portal, or some sort of teleporting business to do?" he asked, looking to the Demon. She shook her head.

"Nope. Just take my hand." the girl said, holding out her hand. Hesitantly, he put his hand in hers and instantly, like a pitch black quilt was thrown over him, the world went black.

The feeling lasted for no more than a few seconds. And the world was light again, well, sort of. It may have been late afternoon. A rumble of thunder made him look up.

"Looks like they just finished a thunderstorm. How convenient." she said in a bored tone. Draco looked around. The neighborhood was very unfamiliar.

"Where are we? Is Potter still alive?"

"Yes, he resides at the place called 12 Grimmauld. We're not but three blocks from there." she answered. Draco shuddered. Wondering just how old he may be. _97. I'm pretty sure. _But would Harry remember him? Just how much different was the world now? Anxiety ripped through him as he tried to keep himself calm. He whipped his head to Lyra.

"Do you think you could find my parent's graves? Or even visit the manor?" he asked. Lyra nodded slowly. "I have no idea where your parents were buried. But we can try to visit the ruins of your manor." she said. Draco nodded, looking up into the sky. It was a pale greenish color, and the wispy grey clouds followed the black, thundering plume of black far to the south. The blonde felt horribly out of place. _What year would this be? If I left in 1996, and this is 80 years from now- _His thoughts were interrupted as a small boy came careening around a wooden fence, and smacked right into Draco. The small boy fell to the ground with a frightened grunt as Malfoy merely stumbled back in surprise. The small boy looked up. His child-like features innocent and innocuous.

"I-I-'m sorry, sir…" he said nervously, getting to his feet and dusting himself off.

"It's all right. Just be careful running around in the streets." Draco said. Then, something clicked. The boy seemed to look a lot like Harry Potter. Was this his grandson? No, younger. Great grandson.

"Excuse me, but do you know a Harry Potter?" he asked quickly before the boy ran from him. The boy whipped his head around, a gleam in his eye.

"Harry Potter!? He's one of the most famousest wizards of all time! Of course I know him! _And…" _the boy sang creeping forward, "He's my great grandfather!" he giggled. Draco sighed in relief.

"Where is he?"

"Umm…I don't think I can tell you…" the boy suddenly looked defensive. "You're a muggle aren't you?" Draco was taken aback. He hadn't heard nor used the term muggle since he 'died'.

"No, I am a wizard." _More like was. _

"I don't believe you! Where's your wand then?"

"I lost it."

"No wizard travels without his wand." the boy began to grow irritating. Draco narrowed his eyes.

"Well, would you believe me if I told you I am dead?" he whispered. To his aid, an eerie gust of wind blew through the leaves on the trees. Somewhere close, a wind chime clinked. The boy was silent.

"My great grandad says no spell can bring back dead people." he finally said, his voice very shaky. Draco stood statue still. He could feel Lyra returning to the area. A strange peeling sound was heard from the ground. Both boys looked down to see….bugs…tons of them, disfigured and slimy black, crawling out of the grass, the dirt, the cement, even out of Draco's suit. Malfoy froze, and watched them. Suddenly a scream tore the air. Draco flinched as he looked at the terrified boy's face before he darted off in horror. The blonde looked to the ground. Everything was gone. All the bugs. Even the ones crawling from the seams in his suit. Lyra's dark form appeared behind him. Draco glanced at her face.

"I can get you inside of Grimmauld. Come now." she whispered.

Draco pushed the door forward, and peered down the dark, musty, narrow hall.

"Potter lives here?" he asked incredulously.

"He's an old man. Old people aren't too observant of their surroundings I suppose. Or at least humans aren't." she mumbled. They pressed on through the corridor, peeking in rooms to find the famous Harry Potter.

"Do they have some sort intruder alert system?" Draco inquired.

"Yes."

"How come we aren't setting it off?"

"We're dead, Draco. The dead indicate nothing to the living." Lyra said. Suddenly, her head snapped to one door. Her arm raised, finger pointed.

"He's in there." she said. Draco crept forward, then paused, looking at the Demon.

"Aren't you coming?"

"No. This is for you, and only for you." she whispered. Malfoy took a step forward, and went into the room. It was small, dark, with one candle sitting upon a nightstand. In the corner, sat an old man. His raven black hair replaced with thin strands of grey hair, his face drooping as if he were to remain sad forever. A wooden stick in his hand. His wand. The old man startled seeing movement at the door.

"How did you get in here?" his voice was strained, but understandable. He raised the wand.

"Get out!"

"No, Harry, Harry Potter. It's me? Draco Malfoy? Do you not remember who I am?" Draco insisted. Harry's face lightened up immediately after he heard the name Draco Malfoy. His head raised to look at him.

"Draco…" he breathed, "by Merlin you haven't aged a day!" he exclaimed. Draco moved to sit down on a crate beside the old rocking chair.

"No, I haven't. Lyra says Demons never age, pyshically. Nor do those who are dead." he explained. Harry reached out to touch Draco's face. Malfoy cringed only slightly.

"Is this really you? Or am I hallucinating again? Heh ha." he chuckled.

"I am really here. Don't you remember the visit? And what I said?" Draco grew nervous that Harry had forgotten all of it. The man's face grew sullen.

"Yes, yes. I remember. You chose to see me as a last visit instead of your parents." he nodded consistently. "I remember. I remember when I found out that the foul Lord Voldemort had taken you. I remember everything." he said. Draco trembled as his mind pushed all those memories to the front of his thoughts.

"Yes." he mumbled.

"Your parents never forgot you." Harry continued. Draco glanced up, tears beginning to bleed through. "I went to visit them after you had visited me. I fulfilled your last wish. They know that Voldemort violated you. They know that you love them. And they know that you are safe from him for an eternity."

"But, did Lyra kill him that night?"

"No," Harry shook his head. "He was immobilized for quite some time after that. But his Horcruxes kept him very much alive. He came back, and Hogwarts was under attack. I had to make a sacrifice. I went to the Forbidden Forest. He thought he had _killed _me. But he hadn't. He sent Narcissa to ascertain my death. She betrayed him. She told him I was dead." Draco shook his head.

"But why?"

"I assume Lucius had told her that I stopped by at his father's house and confessed. They knew that I had helped you in any way I could. And I suppose in their own way, they were grateful. They got on with life, but they never got over your death. The Ministry forgave them for their treacheries." there was a silence. And Draco brushed away the tears. He didn't know what to say anymore. Harry put a hand on his shoulder.

"How does it feel? To die?" he asked. Draco looked up, and half shrugged.

"I'm not sure if I really died, or if my conscious was pushed back. I really don't know." he said.

"All the pure-blood wizards have died. The wizarding world is thinning like mad. We aren't going to exist in a few more years." Harry suddenly said. More tears poured from Draco's rain cloud eyes.

"I would be the only one left?"

"It would appear to be so. Even though you are soulless and dead. You are still a wizard." Harry said, cupping Draco's hands in his. Malfoy took in a shaky breath, his crying growing stronger. It was silent again for a few moments.

"Oh, before I forget. Are you going to visit your old manor before you leave?" Harry inquired. Draco looked up at him through tear stained eyes.

"I intended to." he whispered.

"Good. Over the years, I have forgotten bits and fragments of the truth. But I wrote it down after Dumbledore had told me. It remains in your room of the manor. I returned each year to renew the charm on it it to protect if from anyone until you came. I think you should go there now." he said, rising from the rocking chair. Draco stood as well, nodding as he left the room. Harry followed him to the door, grasping the wall to support himself. A hand grabbed his shoulder.

"Oh, and I left a little returning gift for when you came back." he said. Draco smiled and started down the stairs. Turning around, he watched as the old man waved farewell and disappeared into the house. Lyra stood in a shroud of darkness beneath an old maple tree. Draco walked across the street, not bothering to look either way because, why would he? Lyra stretched out a hand.

"I believe we have one last destination?"

"Indeed. Malfoy manor if you would." Draco said, smiling broadly. In a black haze, the two disappeared from the sidewalk. Harry watched from the window. He knew that once the blonde read his note, he would fall apart.


End file.
